The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection for type II diabetes mellitus and anoplastic astrocytoma due to herbicide agent exposure. The claims are being remanded because the Veteran's complete service personnel records have not been obtained, and a Joint Service Records Research Center (JSRRC) request is needed to verify his assertions of service at or near the Korean DMZ.
The deciding factor: The Board found that the Veteran's complete service personnel records were not available, and requested additional information from him. The JSRRC was also contacted for further research into the Veteran's assertions of service at or near the Korean DMZ.
- Claimed conditions
- type II diabetes mellitus, anoplastic astrocytoma
- How they argued it
- Presumptive (no nexus needed)
- Exposure basis
- Burn pits / airborne hazards
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 28, 2020
- Citation
- 20007191
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 Veteran's claim for an increased rating in excess of 20 percent for type II diabetes mellitus to address a pre-decisional duty to assist error regarding VA not requesting private treatment records.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the matter of entitlement to service connection for type II diabetes mellitus due to a need for an additional medical opinion.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss and an effective date of October 24, 2022, for obstructive sleep apnea. Other claims were denied or remanded.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for type II diabetes mellitus, finding no evidence of the condition during service or within a year of discharge and no link to in-service exposure.
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