The Veteran's appeal for a higher rating for his heart condition prior to December 17, 2019 is denied. A rating of 60 percent is granted as of December 17, 2019.,A remand is ordered due to insufficient medical opinions regarding the relationship between the Veteran's hypertension and service or herbicide exposure, and whether it is proximately due to or aggravated by his service-connected conditions.,The Veteran's claims for service connection related to cramping in arms and legs, hypertension (to include due to service-connected conditions), degenerative disc disease, sciatic of the left lower extremity, and gout are remanded as insufficient medical opinions were provided regarding these issues.
The deciding factor: The evidence does not meet the criteria for a rating in excess of 30 percent prior to December 17, 2019.,The opinion on hypertension is inadequate due to lack of rationale and consideration of the Veteran's history.,Service connection claims related to cramping in arms and legs, hypertension (to include due to service-connected conditions), degenerative disc disease, sciatic of the left lower extremity, and gout are remanded as insufficient medical opinions were provided.
- Claimed conditions
- Coronary bypass surgery (heart condition), Cramping in arms and legs, Hypertension, Degenerative disc disease, Sciatic of the left lower extremity, Gout
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 29, 2020
- Citation
- 20081351
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,886 · Granted: 24% (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 20081351.
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 Veteran's low back disability is currently rated at 20 percent, and the claim for a higher rating is denied. The left shoulder disability is also rated at 20 percent, but there are no incapacitating episodes to warrant a higher rating under the IVDS Formula. The TDIU claim is remanded.
- Denied
The Board denied the claim of service connection for hypertension, finding that it did not manifest during service and is not causally related to the Veteran's exposure to herbicides or service.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for hypertension, finding that there was no evidence of a nexus between his current condition and active duty service or herbicide exposure.
- Denied
The Board has denied service connection for hypertension and has remanded the issue of an increased rating for skin condition.
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