The Board remands the claims for service connection for various conditions to correct pre-decisional duty to assist errors.
The deciding factor: The examinations provided were inadequate and did not adequately address the Veteran's lay statements or provide opinions about the aggravation of the disorders being sought via secondary service connection.
- Claimed conditions
- chronic respiratory disorder, sleep apnea, vertigo, bilateral plantar fascitis, erectile dysfunction (ED), right foot hallux valgus, right shoulder strain, left shoulder strain
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 4, 2024
- Citation
- A24063513
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 Board denied service connection for various conditions, including prostate cancer and related disabilities, urinary incontinence, sleep apnea, hypertension, varicose veins, lumbar spine disability, hip arthritis, shoulder arthritis, ankle arthritis, knee strain, knee replacement, and hand arthritis. The only condition granted was a 10 percent rating for a fracture of the right proximal first metacarpal.
- Partly granted
The Veteran was granted a 70 percent initial disability rating for PTSD effective December 2, 2021, but the claim for an increased rating in excess of 70 percent was denied. The appeal also included claims for service connection and ratings for various conditions, some of which were granted while others were remanded.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for sleep apnea as there is no evidence of an in-service injury or disease, and no competent evidence linking the condition to service.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for asthma and remanded claims for insomnia and sleep apnea. Other conditions were denied.
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