The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient rationale in the July 2020 VA opinion regarding the etiology of the Veteran's eye disability, excluding diabetic retinopathy and diabetic cataracts. The Veteran is seeking service connection for an eye disability other than his already established diabetes mellitus with diabetic retinopathy.
The deciding factor: The Board found that the July 2020 VA opinion did not adequately address whether the Veteran's diagnosed bilateral macular degeneration was proximately due to or aggravated by a service-connected condition, specifically diabetes mellitus type II and its residuals (diabetic retinopathy or diabetic cataracts).
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral macular degeneration
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- November 5, 2020
- Citation
- 20071573
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,036 · Granted: 27% (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 20071573.
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: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to inconsistencies in a previous VA examiner's opinion regarding whether the Veteran's bilateral macular degeneration pre-existed service and was aggravated by military service. The case is now pending further clarification from an appropriate medical professional.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Veteran is granted special monthly compensation (SMC) for his service-connected bilateral focal chorioretinitis, bilateral optic neuritis, peripheral retinal degeneration, bilateral macular degeneration, and bilateral optic neuropathy, as well as PTSD with unspecified neurocognitive disorder and TBI.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board denied service connection for eye disability, including bilateral exotropia, macular degeneration, cataracts, dry eye syndrome, and pinguecula, as the evidence did not support a finding that these conditions were caused by or related to the Veteran's military service.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board denied service connection for bilateral macular degeneration and photophobia as there is no competent medical evidence linking these conditions to the Veteran's military service.
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