The Board has remanded the case due to inadequate medical opinions and needs a new VA etiological opinion regarding whether service-connected disabilities caused or aggravated obesity, which in turn may have led to sleep apnea.
The deciding factor: The Court found the 2018 addendum opinion was inadequate and needed another addendum opinion addressing whether the Veteran's mental health treatment proximately caused his weight gain and OSA.
- Claimed conditions
- obstructive sleep apnea, service-connected psychiatric disability
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 30, 2020
- Citation
- 20081600
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.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for obstructive sleep apnea, effective from the date of the February 2025 rating decision.
- Dismissed
The Veteran withdrew the appeals for service connection for bilateral pes planus, obstructive sleep apnea, bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the issue of entitlement to service connection for obstructive sleep apnea due to a duty to assist error.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection for various conditions, including GERD, chronic kidney disease, COPD, a heart condition, diabetes mellitus, hypertension, insomnia, and obstructive sleep apnea, as additional development is necessary to address the Veteran's exposure to toxic chemical agents during his service.
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