The Board remands the claims for service connection for asthma and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) to correct pre-decisional duty to assist errors.
The deciding factor: The June 2021 VA medical opinions were found inadequate, and there is insufficient information in the record to make a determination on the claims. The AOJ should attempt to obtain missing records and provide an adequate examination and opinion regarding direct service connection for asthma before addressing the secondary claim for OSA.
- Claimed conditions
- Asthma, Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA)
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 10, 2024
- Citation
- A24064809
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 granted service connection for obstructive sleep apnea, left knee disability, and right knee disability. The claims for urinary frequency disability and residuals of a cholecystectomy were denied.
- Partly granted
The Board denied an initial increased rating for diabetes mellitus type II and remanded the claims for service connection for obstructive sleep apnea, right shoulder strain with acromioclavicular joint osteoarthritis and tendinitis, cervical spine spondylosis, left knee degenerative arthritis, right knee degenerative arthritis, and thoracolumbar scoliosis and lumbar spine degenerative changes.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for asbestosis, bronchitis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), rhinitis, sinusitis, and asthma. The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss was also denied a compensable rating.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for various disabilities and denied higher ratings for several service-connected conditions.
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