The Board remands the case to adjudicate the Veteran's claims for an earlier effective date for service connection for loss of smell, loss of taste, and trigeminal nerve disability.
The deciding factor: Remand is required due to a pre-decisional duty due process error in failing to properly adjudicate the Veteran's contentions regarding an earlier effective date for service connection.
- Claimed conditions
- residuals of a broken jaw (claimed as right jaw), loss of smell, loss of taste, trigeminal nerve
- How they argued it
- Reopened with new and material evidence
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 4, 2024
- Citation
- A24063511
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.
- Denied
The Veteran was awarded service connection for allergic rhinitis based on the PACT Act, but an earlier effective date prior to August 10, 2022, is not warranted.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for left foot joint arthritis, left ankle joint arthritis, right ankle joint arthritis, right foot joint arthritis, and loss of smell. The Board also denied an initial compensable rating for bilateral hearing loss and a higher rating for bilateral tinnitus.
- Denied
The Board denied a compensable rating for the Veteran's service-connected loss of smell as it was determined that the loss of smell did not meet the criteria for a complete loss, which is required for a 10 percent rating.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for major depressive disorder, TMJ and bruxism, and headaches but denied it for loss of smell.
We are not the VA. Veterans’ Rights is an independent resource built for veterans. We are not the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, not part of the government, and not endorsed by any government agency.
This is general information, not legal advice. For advice about your own situation, talk to a VA-accredited representative — many help for free.