The Board has remanded the claims for service connection due to new and material evidence having been received, but the diabetes and acquired psychiatric disability issues remain unresolved. The Veteran's schizophrenia claim is reopened, but further development is needed as his in-service diagnosis is unclear.
The deciding factor: New and material evidence was found sufficient to reopen the claim for service connection for schizophrenia, but additional information is required regarding the nature of the Veteran's in-service mental health condition and any periods of Reserve service.
- Claimed conditions
- schizophrenia, an acquired psychiatric disability
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 28, 2023
- Citation
- 23067930
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 23067930.
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.
- Granted
The Veteran's schizophrenia is rated at 70 percent, indicating significant impairment in work and social functioning.
- Denied
The Veteran's application to revise a November 2001 rating decision, which assigned an initial 30 percent rating for an acquired psychiatric disability due to service connection on the merits, is denied as there is no clear and unmistakable error in the decision.
- Dismissed
The Board dismissed the claims for an effective date prior to August 18, 2016, for a 100 percent disability rating for schizophrenia and for spousal SMC for aid and attendance. The Veteran's claim was erroneously adjudicated by the AOJ and constitutes a free-standing earlier effective date claim.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has found that the Appellant's discharge from service is not a bar to VA compensation benefits, but it was an error in fulfilling VA's duty to assist not to obtain a medical opinion addressing the extent of any psychiatric symptoms during service and their effect on the Appellant's behavior. The matter is therefore remanded for further action.
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