The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection for bone spurs of the left and right heels, hypertension (HTN), obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), and gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) due to a lack of medical opinions addressing whether his service-connected psychiatric disabilities caused or aggravated these conditions.
The deciding factor: The Board found that additional VA medical opinions were needed to address the Veteran's arguments regarding obesity as an intermediate step between his service-connected disabilities and his claimed OSA, HTN, GERD, and bilateral bone spurs.
- Claimed conditions
- bone spurs of the left heel, bone spurs of the right heel, hypertension (HTN), obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD)
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 21, 2022
- Citation
- 22059300
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 22059300.
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 service connection for various conditions, including right shoulder disability, abdominal hernia, GERD, bilateral ankle disabilities, and bilateral foot disabilities. The evidence did not support a finding that these conditions were incurred or aggravated during the appellant's period of active duty.
- Granted
The Veteran's OSA is granted as service connected. The Veteran's infectious disease claim and stomach disability claim are remanded for further examination.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has denied service connection for sinusitis and remanded the Veteran's claims for chronic lower back pain, right knee pain, left knee pain, neck pain, and GERD.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection due to errors in obtaining relevant medical records and authorization for private treatment providers. The issues include heart disorder, OSA, sinusitis, lumbar spine disorder, and right knee disorder all related to Agent Orange exposure.
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