The Board remands the issues of entitlement to service connection for obstructive sleep apnea and an acquired psychiatric disorder, including PTSD, anxiety disorder, and depression, due to pre-decisional duty-to-assist errors.
The deciding factor: The January 2024 VA opinion regarding OSA was inadequate as it did not address the aggravation aspect of secondary service connection. The December 2023 VA examiner's opinion for the acquired psychiatric disorder was also deemed inadequate due to reliance on inaccurate evidence and failure to fully consider lay statements.
- Claimed conditions
- Acquired Psychiatric Disorder, including Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Anxiety Disorder, and Depression, Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA)
- How they argued it
- Aggravation of a pre-existing condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 22, 2025
- Citation
- A25036537
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,874 · Granted: 33% (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 A25036537.
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims of entitlement to service connection for vertigo and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) due to a pre-decisional duty to assist error. The Veteran's hearing loss is not rated higher than 10 percent.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has determined that the claims for service connection for OSA and insomnia must be remanded due to inadequate VA examinations and opinions, as well as a failure to obtain TERA opinions on all relevant exposures.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claims for an initial rating in excess of 50 percent for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) and a separate rating for chronic pulmonary embolism due to inadequate VA examinations.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient evidence regarding service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, including PTSD. The Veteran's lay statements and medical records are considered in determining whether there is a nexus between current symptoms and service.
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