The appeal is remanded to provide the Veteran with another VA examination to obtain an adequate etiology opinion that considers her competent and credible reports of her observable adverse symptomatology, as well as to consider provisions under 38 U.S.C.A. § 1117; 38 C.F.R. § 3.317, and the PACT Act.
The deciding factor: The November 2018 VA examiner's opinion was inadequate because it did not address the Veteran's credible and competent report of weight gain and fatigue during service, as required by Barr v. Nicholson, 21 Vet. App. 303 (2007), and Davidson v. Shinseki, 581 F. 3d 1313 (Fed. Cir. 2009).
- Claimed conditions
- thyroid disorder including a nodule
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- Gulf War
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 9, 2024
- Citation
- 24031659
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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- Granted
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