The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection and rating of asbestosis with pleural plaques due to inadequate VA examinations, lack of contemporaneous medical evidence, and conflicting lay testimony. The low back disability claim is also being remanded.
The deciding factor: The Board found that there was not substantial compliance with its prior remand directives regarding the adequacy of VA examinations for both conditions and the need for a complete rationale in the examination reports.
- Claimed conditions
- low back, asbestosis with pleural plaques
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 26, 2022
- Citation
- 22004199
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 22004199.
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.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for bilateral tinnitus and right ear hearing loss, but denied service connection for right shoulder disability, obstructive sleep apnea, low back disability, left ear hearing loss, erectile dysfunction, migraine headaches, special monthly compensation based on loss of use of creative organ, and remanded claims for service connection for right wrist, cervical spine, and irritable bowel syndrome.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for muscle spasms of the upper back, low back, right chest, hamstrings, and quadratus femoris based on a finding that these conditions are related to in-service injuries.
- Partly granted
The veteran's claims for increased ratings for left and right ankle sprains were denied. However, the veteran was granted a total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU) as of August 1, 2017.
- Granted
The Veteran's service-connected disabilities have been determined to render him unable to obtain and/or maintain substantially gainful employment, thus entitling him to a total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU).
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