The Board has determined that a remand is necessary to correct a pre-decisional error regarding the duty to assist, specifically in obtaining a medical opinion on whether the Veteran's service-connected disabilities were a principal or contributory cause of his death due to heart disease.
The deciding factor: A VA medical opinion is required to determine if the Veteran's service-connected PTSD and bilateral hearing loss aggravated his atherosclerotic and hypertensive cardiovascular disease, leading to his death.
- Claimed conditions
- Atherosclerotic and hypertensive cardiovascular disease
- How they argued it
- Aggravation of a pre-existing condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- May 22, 2024
- Citation
- A24026762
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. Read the original VA decision (opens in a new tab) using citation A24026762.
What this means for you
A remand sends an issue back for more development, often a new examination or missing records. It does not award the benefit or decide the final outcome. The original decision explains the additional work ordered.
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 the cause of the Veteran's death and VA burial benefits as there was no evidence establishing a nexus between the Veteran's death and his military service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board is remanding the matter to obtain a VA opinion regarding whether the Veteran's atherosclerotic and hypertensive cardiovascular disease was directly related to service.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for the cause of his death due to atherosclerotic and hypertensive cardiovascular disease, finding that there was no evidence linking these conditions to his military service. The Board also found that the appellant did not meet her burden of proof in establishing service connection.
- Denied
The Veteran's death was caused by acute heroin intoxication, with atherosclerotic and hypertensive cardiovascular disease being a significant but not the underlying cause. The Board denied service connection for both the cause of death and the cardiovascular condition due to lack of evidence linking these conditions to service.
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