The Veteran's claim for a higher rating for diabetic proliferative retinopathy is granted, but his claim for a higher rating for diabetes mellitus and compensable rating for diabetic proliferative retinopathy prior to May 13, 2018 are both remanded.
The deciding factor: The claims for increased ratings require additional medical opinions regarding the Veteran's service-connected conditions and their relationship to other diagnosed conditions.
- Claimed conditions
- Diabetic Proliferative Retinopathy, Diabetes Mellitus, Cataracts, Glaucoma
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 10, 2020
- Citation
- 20078391
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 20078391.
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 increased ratings for diabetes mellitus, hypertension, and a psychiatric disability due to insufficient evidence of the severity required for higher ratings.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection due to a pre-decisional duty to assist error regarding VA's obligation to obtain relevant records from the Social Security Administration.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for a back disability, and remanded claims for respiratory condition, cataracts, diabetes mellitus, and hypertension.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings for a low back disability, pseudofolliculitis barbae (PFB), and glaucoma.
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