The Board has found that the Veteran's claims for service connection and increased ratings are remanded due to a duty to assist error. The Veteran is requested to undergo an additional VA examination to determine the nature and etiology of any currently present psychiatric disability, including PTSD.
The deciding factor: There was a duty to assist error in not addressing the August 1991 STR notations regarding the Veteran's nightmares and trouble sleeping following his deployment to Southwest Asia. The Veteran should be provided an additional VA examination to determine the nature and etiology of any currently present psychiatric disability, including PTSD.
- Claimed conditions
- maxillary sinusitis with allergic rhinitis, psychiatric disability (to include PTSD)
- How they argued it
- Reopened with new and material evidence
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 28, 2020
- Citation
- A20009448
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 A20009448.
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 Veteran's bilateral pes planus is granted a 10 percent rating prior to March 10, 2020, and denied any higher rating thereafter.,Service connection for a psychiatric disability (to include PTSD) is denied.,Service connection for headaches is denied.,Service connection for hypertension is denied.,Service connection for left testicle condition is denied.,Service connection for right thumb condition is denied.,The claim to reopen the service connection for hearing loss was denied as no new and material evidence was received.
- Granted
The Board has granted the Veteran's petitions to readjudicate his claims for service connection for psychiatric disability (to include PTSD), type II diabetes mellitus, and back disability based on new evidence. However, service connection is denied for all three conditions.
- Denied
The Board denied clothing allowance claims for 2010 based on the use of various orthopedic devices and compression socks, finding that they did not meet eligibility criteria due to lack of service connection or damage to clothing.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for service connection due to insufficient evidence regarding the onset and etiology of various disabilities, including left shoulder, right elbow, bilateral eye, respiratory, neurological, back, knee, leg, psychiatric, and gastrointestinal disabilities. The Veteran is requested to provide authorization for VA to obtain relevant private treatment records and undergo appropriate examinations.
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