The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection for COPD and aortic aneurysm due to insufficient medical opinions regarding the etiology of these conditions. The VA is directed to obtain additional medical opinions addressing whether the Veteran's current COPD and aortic aneurysm are related to his military service, including exposure to dust, fuels, solvents, rocket fuels, or herbicides.
The deciding factor: The Board found that the provided medical opinions were inadequate as they did not address the Veteran's claimed exposures during service and failed to consider private DBQs regarding secondary service connection.
- Claimed conditions
- COPD, aortic aneurysm
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 29, 2021
- Citation
- 21025961
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 21025961.
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 the Veteran's claim for service connection for COPD, finding that there is no evidence of a nexus between his current respiratory disability and active duty service. The VA examiner concluded that the COPD was more likely due to tobacco use rather than asbestos exposure in service.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death, attributing it to his exposure to Agent Orange during service. COPD is considered a disease associated with such exposure.
- Granted
The Board has determined that new and relevant evidence has been received to reopen the claim of service connection for COPD. The Veteran's COPD is presumed due to exposure to herbicides, but the evidence does not support a finding that it began during active service or is related to in-service exposure.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for aortic aneurysm secondary to his service-connected hypertension, squamous cell cancer of the skin, and benign prostatic hyperplasia. The issues of entitlement to compensable ratings for hypertension and colon cancer residuals are also remanded due to potential impact on the issue of a 10 percent evaluation based on multiple noncompensable service-connected disabilities.
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