The Veteran's claims for service connection are being remanded due to the need for additional medical opinions regarding the etiology of his hypertension, erectile disorder, gastrointestinal disability, COPD, skin disability, and sleep apnea. The VA examiner will be asked to provide an opinion on whether these conditions are proximately due to or aggravated by his service-connected coronary artery disease, chronic kidney disease, type II diabetes mellitus, or other relevant conditions.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's claims involve complex medical issues that require clarification regarding the potential secondary effects of his service-connected conditions. The VA examiner will need to address these specific theories of entitlement in order to provide a complete and accurate assessment.
- Claimed conditions
- COPD, Erectile Disorder, Gastrointestinal Disability (hiatal hernia and gastroesophageal reflux disease with Barrett's esophagus), Hypertension, Right Elbow Lateral Epicondylitis, Skin Disability (actinic keratosis, squamous cell carcinoma), Sleep Apnea
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 2, 2020
- Citation
- 20064387
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,893 · Granted: 31% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)
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 20064387.
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 the Veteran's claim for service connection for COPD, finding that there is no evidence of a nexus between his current respiratory disability and active duty service. The VA examiner concluded that the COPD was more likely due to tobacco use rather than asbestos exposure in service.
- 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 denied service connection for sleep apnea, finding that the evidence did not support a link between the condition and service.
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