The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claims for diabetes mellitus, heart disability, and skin cancer due to in-service herbicide exposure. The VA will need to determine if the Veteran had service within the territorial sea of Vietnam while aboard the USS Hooper, as well as complete further development regarding his heart disability.
The deciding factor: The Board found that remand was necessary for additional development related to the Veteran's claimed in-service herbicide exposure and for a VA examination to address the nature and etiology of any identified heart disability.
- Claimed conditions
- diabetes mellitus, type II, heart disability, skin cancer
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 16, 2020
- Citation
- 20004153
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.
- 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 Board remands the claims for service connection for right foot, left elbow, left hip, left ankle, and diabetes mellitus to obtain additional medical evidence.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for a heart disability as the evidence did not support that it began during active service or was related to an in-service injury.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for an initial rating higher than 30 percent for the service-connected heart disability to correct an error by the AOJ in not informing the Veteran of his right to a pre-decisional hearing.
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