The Board has remanded the cases of service connection for Obstructive Sleep Apnea, Chronic Headache Disorder (claimed as Migraine headaches with vascular disease), and Acquired Psychiatric Disorder (claimed as PTSD with Depression) due to insufficient evidence in the record.
The deciding factor: The Veteran failed to participate in scheduled VA examinations for his claimed conditions, leading to a remand for further development.
- Claimed conditions
- Obstructive Sleep Apnea, Chronic Headache Disorder (claimed as Migraine headaches with vascular disease), Acquired Psychiatric Disorder (claimed as PTSD with Depression)
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 13, 2020
- Citation
- 20066197
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 disabilities and denied higher ratings for several service-connected conditions.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for obstructive sleep apnea as secondary to the Veteran's service-connected psychiatric disorders, lumbar and cervical spine disabilities, bilateral radiculopathy of the upper extremities, and bilateral radiculopathy and neuropathy of the lower extremities.
- Denied
The Board denied a rating in excess of 50 percent for PTSD, finding that the Veteran's symptoms more closely approximated those associated with a 50 percent rating.
- Partly granted
The appeal for entitlement to service connection for obstructive sleep apnea was granted, while other appeals were dismissed as untimely and remanded for further action on essential tremors.
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This is general information, not legal advice. For advice about your own situation, talk to a VA-accredited representative — many help for free.