The Board has remanded the cases for further development and consideration, including obtaining medical opinions on whether the Veteran's conditions are related to his service or specific exposures.
The deciding factor: The Board found that VA’s duty to obtain opinion was triggered due to the possibility of herbicide exposure causing chronic kidney disease and/or hypertension, and also required an addendum opinion regarding aggravation of erectile dysfunction by prostate cancer.
- Claimed conditions
- erectile dysfunction, chronic kidney disease
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- Agent Orange / herbicides
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 20, 2020
- Citation
- A20009040
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 A20009040.
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.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for diabetes mellitus type II with erectile dysfunction was denied as the evidence did not show that he had been diagnosed and manifested to at least a 10 percent disability rating on or prior to May 8, 2001.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for diabetes mellitus, prostate cancer, visual impairment, hypertension, and erectile dysfunction due to lack of exposure to herbicide agents during service. The Veteran's claims were not granted.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeal was dismissed as the appellant withdrew their request for a hearing and to continue with the appeal.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has found that the Veteran meets the basic medical eligibility criteria for PCAFC benefits due to his need for personal care services based on symptoms or residuals of neurological or other impairment or injury. However, further clinical evaluation is needed to determine if participation in the program is in the Veteran's best interest.
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