The Veteran's claims for service connection have been remanded due to pre-decisional duty to assist errors, including failure to obtain SSA records and VA treatment records. The Veteran was also provided with a new examination for his claimed GERD and sinus conditions.
The deciding factor: There were pre-decisional duty to assist errors that required the case to be remanded, specifically regarding missing SSA records and VA treatment records.
- Claimed conditions
- diabetes mellitus type II (DM II), gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), sinus condition, lower back condition, polyneuropathy of the right lower extremity, polyneuropathy of the left lower extremity
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 6, 2020
- Citation
- A20015229
Veterans Law Judge
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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 A20015229.
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 right shoulder disability, abdominal hernia, GERD, bilateral ankle disabilities, and bilateral foot disabilities. The evidence did not support a finding that these conditions were incurred or aggravated during the appellant's period of active duty.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for prostate cancer, coronary artery disease (CAD), diabetes mellitus type II (DM II), hypertension, and erectile dysfunction as secondary to service-connected DM II. The Veteran's exposure to Agent Orange during active service is presumed.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has denied service connection for sinusitis and remanded the Veteran's claims for chronic lower back pain, right knee pain, left knee pain, neck pain, and GERD.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has determined that the VA examination provided in April 2024 was inadequate for adjudication purposes and remands the case for a new examination to determine if the Veteran's sinus condition is related to his military service.
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