The Board has remanded the case due to inadequate medical opinion regarding the cause of death and service connection for mesothelioma.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner's opinion is insufficient as it does not address the Veteran’s MPRs, including his June 1951 fire incident, or the Veteran's lay statements about asbestos exposure.
- Claimed conditions
- mesothelioma
- How they argued it
- Aggravation of a pre-existing condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 10, 2019
- Citation
- 19192849
This is a plain-language summary generated by AI from a public Board of Veterans’ Appeals decision. It can contain errors — always verify against the original. Look up the original decision on VA.gov (opens in a new tab) using citation 19192849.
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 the Veteran's claim for service connection for lung condition, to include asthma, COPD, emphysema, asbestosis, and mesothelioma.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss and adjustment disorder, but denied service connection for mesothelioma.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the Veteran's claim for service connection for lung conditions, including asthma, COPD, mesothelioma, and emphysema, due to an inadequate medical opinion addressing the etiology of these conditions.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for the Veteran's cause of death, finding that it was etiologically related to in-service asbestos exposure.
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