The Board remands the matter to secure an addendum medical opinion addressing the likely etiology of the Veteran's cause of death, specifically regarding exposure to hazardous chemical agents while stationed at Camp Lejeune.
The deciding factor: The previous examiner neglected to address key inquiries and provided insufficient rationale for their conclusions, necessitating a new opinion.
- Claimed conditions
- Cardiomyopathy, Arrhythmia
- How they argued it
- Presumptive (no nexus needed)
- Exposure basis
- Camp Lejeune water
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 11, 2025
- Citation
- 25003377
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,548 · Granted: 31% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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 25003377.
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.
- Granted
The Veteran's claim for service connection for heart condition was granted with an effective date of August 1, 2019. The decision is based on evidence showing exposure to diesel and gas fuel during service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has determined that the Veteran's heart conditions may be related to his service-connected sleep apnea and/or generalized anxiety disorder, but further examination is needed to determine causation.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the case due to a lack of adequate medical opinion regarding the Veteran's heart conditions and their relation to service. The Veteran is asked to provide an addendum opinion from a qualified medical professional.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim of CUE in the December 2005 rating decision that assigned a 60 percent initial disability rating for cardiomyopathy with pulmonary hypertension, finding no clear and unmistakable error.
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