The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient medical evidence regarding the Veteran's cause of death and his service-connected lupus condition.
The deciding factor: Insufficient medical records from VA facilities where the Veteran was treated have not been obtained, which is necessary for a proper determination of the cause of death and its relation to service connection.
- Claimed conditions
- lupus erythematosus, systemic lupus erythematosus
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 13, 2019
- Citation
- 19185835
What this means for you
A remand is not a loss. The Board sent the case back for more development — often a new exam or missing records — before making a final decision. Many remands later end in a grant, and the decision spells out exactly what the Board wanted to see.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for rheumatoid arthritis, fibromyalgia, and systemic lupus erythematosus as there was no evidence of onset during active service or etiological relationship to an in-service injury, event, or disease.
- Dismissed
The appeal of entitlement to an increased disability rating for lupus was dismissed due to the Veteran attempting to appeal a deferral, which cannot be appealed.
- Partly granted
The Board denied service connection for a left hamstring disability, pseudofolliculitis barbae, and various other disabilities. The claims for service connection for left ankle, right ankle, acquired psychiatric, systemic lupus erythematosus, lumbar spine, right shoulder, right hip, left knee, right knee, and bilateral shin splints were remanded.
- Dismissed
The appeal for an earlier effective date and a compensable rating for lupus erythematosus was dismissed as the Board's decision in April 2025 granted service connection with the earliest possible effective date and the highest possible rating.
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