The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection due to insufficient information regarding his exposure to herbicide agents in Vietnam. The claims will be further developed to determine if he served within the 12 nautical mile territorial seas of Vietnam, which would allow for presumptive service connection.
The deciding factor: The Board found that there was not sufficient evidence to determine whether the Veteran's service aboard the U.S.S. Hancock placed him within the 12 nautical mile territorial seas of Vietnam where herbicide agent exposure is presumed.
- Claimed conditions
- heart disorder, prostate cancer, kidney disorder, diabetes mellitus, type II, bilateral lower extremity peripheral neuropathy
- How they argued it
- Presumptive (no nexus needed)
- Exposure basis
- Burn pits / airborne hazards
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 14, 2020
- Citation
- 20003244
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 various conditions, including prostate cancer and related disabilities, urinary incontinence, sleep apnea, hypertension, varicose veins, lumbar spine disability, hip arthritis, shoulder arthritis, ankle arthritis, knee strain, knee replacement, and hand arthritis. The only condition granted was a 10 percent rating for a fracture of the right proximal first metacarpal.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for prostate cancer, related to in-service exposures at Camp Lejeune.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection for hypertension and diabetes mellitus to obtain further medical opinions regarding their potential relationship to toxic exposures during active service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran is granted an effective date of April 25, 2014, for service connection for prostate cancer.
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