The Board has remanded the claims for cirrhosis of the liver and low back disability due to duty-to-assist errors. The Veteran's alcohol abuse disorder is raised as secondary to PTSD, and his low back disability needs further clarification regarding its relationship to service.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner did not provide an adequate rationale regarding whether the Veteran’s cirrhosis of the liver and/or alcohol abuse disorder are related to his service-connected PTSD or if his low back disability is caused by his military service.
- Claimed conditions
- cirrhosis of the liver, alcohol abuse disorder
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 20, 2020
- Citation
- 20074717
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,341 · Granted: 33% (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 20074717.
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to a duty-to-assist error in the prior VA examination, and the Veteran's claim for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disability is being returned for further evaluation.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeal for service connection for cirrhosis of the liver has been dismissed due to their death during the pendency of the appeal.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for hepatitis C and its secondary effects on other conditions, including cirrhosis of the liver, diabetes mellitus type II, esophageal varices, hepatic encephalopathy, and splenomegaly.
- Granted
The Veteran's cause of death is due to complications from chronic alcohol abuse, which the Board finds was caused by or aggravated by an underlying acquired psychiatric disorder (insomnia). The Board grants service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death.
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