The Veteran's death was caused by congestive heart failure, which is listed as a 'sequel to Agent Orange' on his death certificate. The Board has ordered further development including obtaining medical records and an addendum opinion from the VA examiner who previously reviewed the case.
The deciding factor: The cause of death listed on the Veteran's death certificate was congestive heart failure, which is considered a sequel to Agent Orange exposure. Further investigation is needed to determine if service-connected conditions contributed to or caused this condition.
- Claimed conditions
- diabetes mellitus type II, bilateral lower extremity diabetic peripheral neuropathy (PN), bladder cancer residuals, chronic bronchitis, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD)/depression, right carotid occlusion, rheumatoid arthritis (RA), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), supraventricular tachycardia (SVT), hypercholesterolemia, chronic pancreatitis, peripheral vascular disease (PVD), cerebrovascular accidents (CVA)
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 20, 2023
- Citation
- 23017157
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 23017157.
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.
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- Denied
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- Dismissed
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- Denied
The Board denied service connection for asthma, COPD, pancreatitis, stroke, and left arm weakness (claimed as secondary to stroke) based on the presumption of exposure to contaminated water at Camp Lejeune. The evidence did not support a finding that these conditions were related to service or due to in-service exposure.
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