The Board remands the issues of service connection for a lung disability and entitlement to TDIU due to an inadequate VA medical opinion.
The deciding factor: The December 2023 VA opinion is found to be inadequate as it lacks supporting rationale, specifically regarding the Veteran's specific disease progression and potential toxic exposure at Camp Lejeune.
- Claimed conditions
- lung disability, to include idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), rhinobronchitis, and bronchiectasis
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- Camp Lejeune water
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 25, 2024
- Citation
- 24033389
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.
- Partly granted
The Board denied ratings in excess of 30 percent for bilateral foot disability, a rating in excess of 30 percent for left knee disability, and a rating in excess of 10 percent for lung disability. However, it granted an effective date of December 17, 2012, but no earlier, for the award service connection for limitation of extension of the left knee and left knee scar, and granted TDIU from January 17, 2013 to November 5, 2018.
- Partly granted
The Board granted a 10 percent disability rating for the service-connected scar, status-post appendectomy, but denied all other claims for increased ratings and service connection.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for service connection for lung disability to obtain an addendum opinion addressing the etiology of the Veteran's lung conditions, including COPD and biapical lung scarring.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for a psychiatric disability, lung disability, and heart disability. The claims for migraines/sinus headaches, allergic rhinitis, sinusitis, and sleep apnea were remanded for further development.
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