The Board has remanded the Veteran's claim for hypertension secondary to service-connected disabilities due to insufficient development and lack of a clear opinion on whether his hypertension is related to his service-connected conditions or if it had its clinical onset during active service. The issue regarding presumed in-service herbicide exposure and hypertension was also remanded.
The deciding factor: The Board found that the previous opinions did not address the Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including diabetes mellitus type II, PTSD, OSA, narcolepsy cataplexy, and peripheral neuropathy of the bilateral upper and lower extremities. Additionally, the opinion on presumed in-service herbicide exposure was inadequate.
- Claimed conditions
- hypertension
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 14, 2020
- Citation
- 20033681
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 20033681.
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 has remanded the claims for service connection for hypertension and peripheral neuropathy of the bilateral upper and lower extremities due to insufficient medical opinions regarding their etiology.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claims for increased ratings and service connection are being remanded due to the need for additional development, including VA examinations.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for additional development due to conflicting opinions regarding service connection for peripheral neuropathy, hypertension, and skin disabilities related to herbicide exposure.
- Denied
The Veteran's claim for service connection for hypertension and increased rating for anxiety disorder have been denied. The Board found that there is no evidence of a current disability meeting the criteria for hypertension, and the Veteran's anxiety disorder does not meet the criteria for a higher rating.
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