The Veteran's claim for a higher rating for his service-connected Coronary Artery Disease (CAD) disability is remanded due to the need for a new VA examination to assess the current severity of his condition.
The deciding factor: The February 2018 VA examination report did not adequately assess the severity of the Veteran’s current service-connected CAD and failed to provide results from a recent echocardiogram or measurements of the Veteran's MET levels.
- Claimed conditions
- Heart Disease, Coronary Artery Disease
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 18, 2020
- Citation
- 20041616
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 20041616.
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.
- Granted
The Veteran's TDIU was granted effective March 2, 2018, due to his service-connected disabilities including PTSD and other conditions. The decision also noted that the Veteran is currently self-employed as a truck driver.
- Denied
The Veteran's claims for specially adapted housing and special home adaptation grants were denied as they did not meet the criteria for assistance in acquiring such benefits due to lack of qualifying service-connected disabilities.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims of service connection for a heart disability and hypertension due to pre-decisional duty-to-assist errors. The AOJ is required to obtain addendum medical opinions regarding toxic exposure risk activities (TERA).
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for SMC in excess of SMC(n) based on his service-connected conditions and additional disabilities, as well as his need for aid and attendance. The appeal was dismissed.
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