The Board has determined that the evidence does not demonstrate a nexus between the Veteran's currently diagnosed asthma and service, but has found deficiencies in the VA medical opinion. The matter is being remanded to obtain an Individual Longitudinal Exposure Record (ILER) for the Veteran's claimed exposure to smoke from artillery and burn pits in Vietnam used to burn oil and garbage, and to obtain a new TERA memorandum.
The deciding factor: The Board has found deficiencies in the VA medical opinion that did not consider the Veteran's claims of in-service exposure to smoke from artillery and burn pits in Vietnam. The PACT Act does not provide presumptive service connection for burn pit exposures, but the Veteran is not precluded from establishing service connection on a direct basis.
- Claimed conditions
- Asthma
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- Burn pits / airborne hazards
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 23, 2024
- Citation
- A24085697
This is a plain-language summary generated by AI from a public Board of Veterans’ Appeals decision. It can contain errors — always verify against the original. Look up the original decision on VA.gov (opens in a new tab) using citation A24085697.
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's asthma is currently rated as 10 percent disabling, and the Board finds that this rating adequately compensates his service-connected condition.
- Partly granted
The Veteran's asthma is currently rated at 30 percent, and the Board finds that a higher rating is not warranted.,The Veteran's sleep apnea claim has been remanded due to duty-to-assist errors.
- Granted
The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including PTSD, asthma, and foot conditions, rendered him unable to secure or follow a substantially gainful occupation consistent with his education and work history throughout the appeal period.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand several cases related to the Veteran's PTSD, asthma, and other conditions. The issues include increased disability ratings for PTSD and asthma, as well as effective date determinations.
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