The appeal is remanded to adjudicate the Veteran's claim of clear and unmistakable error (CUE) in a May 2018 rating decision that discontinued a separate evaluation for GERD and included it in the evaluation of ulcerative colitis.
The deciding factor: The Board lacks jurisdiction over any theory of CUE that has not been adjudicated by the RO in the first instance, and the AOJ did not address the Veteran's CUE claim as raised.
- Claimed conditions
- Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD), Ulcerative Colitis
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 19, 2025
- Citation
- A25044628
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 793 · Granted: 28% (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 A25044628.
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 acquired psychiatric disorder is granted a 70% rating, effective July 15, 2024. The Veteran's GERD remains at a 10% rating.
- Granted
The Veteran's PTSD is granted at a 70 percent rating prior to July 29, 2024. The GERD rating remains at 30 percent disabled but no higher.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's IBS with GERD was granted an initial 60 percent rating. The Board has remanded the issue of service connection for obstructive sleep apnea due to insufficient medical opinions and development.
- Denied
The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for increased ratings for his service-connected IBS and GERD, finding that the evidence does not support a higher rating under the applicable criteria.
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