The Veteran's claim for service connection for a heart disability has been reopened and is granted. The Board finds that new and material evidence has been received to reopen the previously denied claim.,Service connection for COPD was not established, as there is no current diagnosis of COPD in the record.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's heart disability is presumed due to herbicide exposure during service. The Board finds new and material evidence has been received to reopen his previously denied claim.,There is insufficient medical evidence linking the Veteran’s current respiratory disability to service, as there is no diagnosis of COPD in the record.
- Claimed conditions
- Heart Disability, Respiratory Disability - COPD, Peripheral Neuropathy of the Right Lower Extremity, Peripheral Neuropathy of the Left Lower Extremity, Peripheral Neuropathy of the Upper Extremities, Hypertension
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 15, 2020
- Citation
- 20040477
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. Read the original VA decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 20040477.
What this means for you
A remand sends an issue back for more development, often a new examination or missing records. It does not award the benefit or decide the final outcome. The original decision explains the additional work ordered.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Board denied the claim of service connection for hypertension, finding that it did not manifest during service and is not causally related to the Veteran's exposure to herbicides or service.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for hypertension, finding that there was no evidence of a nexus between his current condition and active duty service or herbicide exposure.
- Denied
The Board has denied service connection for hypertension and has remanded the issue of an increased rating for skin condition.
- Granted
The Board has restored the Veteran's 10% rating for hypertension effective December 1, 2025 and denied a rating in excess of 10%. The reduction from 10% to noncompensable was not proper.
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