The Board has found that there was insufficient medical evidence to support the claim and has ordered further development, specifically obtaining a full consent form for the Veteran's hernia repair surgery.
The deciding factor: There is insufficient medical evidence to determine if the Veteran’s additional disabilities are due to carelessness, negligence, or lack of proper skill by VA practitioners.
- Claimed conditions
- residuals of a perforated colon, hernias, methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infection
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- October 22, 2020
- Citation
- 20068457
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 961 · Granted: 20% (granted or partly granted, in the indexed 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. Read the original VA decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 20068457.
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
Use your own notice and decision stage. A remanded issue is not a final court-appealable denial. VA review guidance and CAVC filing instructions (U.S. federal; reviewed October 7, 2026).
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Veteran's claim for bilateral hearing loss is denied as there is no evidence of a current disability.,The Veteran's claims for hernias and jaw pain are denied due to lack of current disabilities related to the conditions.,The Veteran's claim for an acquired psychiatric disorder (claimed as alcohol use disorder) is denied as it is not service-connected.
- Whole decision: Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for a psychiatric disability as secondary to the Veteran's service-connected disabilities and denied service connection for hernias. The issues of service connection for encephalopathy and special monthly compensation based on aid and attendance/housebound status were remanded.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Veteran's claim for service connection for erectile dysfunction, hypertension, cervical spine degenerative arthritis, right and left tennis elbow, left shoulder arthritis, left hand neuropathy, right leg neuropathy, and left wrist carpal tunnel syndrome has been granted. The PACT Act expanded the presumptive exposure for hypertension to include veterans who were exposed to herbicide agents during service in Vietnam.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claim for compensation under 38 U.S.C. § 1151 for residuals of abdominal aortic aneurysm repair, including hernias, chronic stomach pain, and open sores is being remanded due to duty-to-assist errors and legal issues.
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