The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection for a left ankle disability and sleep apnea due to incomplete VA assistance in obtaining relevant medical records, particularly from the Methodist Hospital in Dallas, Texas. The Veteran is also required to provide authorization for VA to obtain her private treatment records.
The deciding factor: The Board found that there were insufficient efforts made by VA to obtain the Veteran's private treatment records and failed to notify her of the inability to secure these records.
- Claimed conditions
- left ankle disability, sleep apnea
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 7, 2023
- Citation
- 23059974
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 23059974.
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has expanded the scope of the claim to include any mental health disorder raised by the record and has remanded for additional development regarding service connection for left leg, ankle, and psychiatric disabilities.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for sleep apnea, finding that there was no evidence of a chronic disease manifesting within one year after service and concluding that the current disability is not related to his in-service deviated septum.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case for additional development regarding the Veteran's claim of service connection for sleep apnea. The Veteran will be provided with a VA examination to determine if his current sleep disorder is related to his military service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the issue of service connection for sleep apnea due to insufficient medical opinions and need for further development.
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