The Veteran's respiratory disorder, including pulmonary hypertension, restrictive and obstructive lung diseases, sarcoidosis, and other conditions are remanded for further development to determine the nature and etiology of his service-connected disabilities.
The deciding factor: The VA medical opinion relied on in the April 2024 rating decision was inadequate as it did not consider all pertinent lay and medical evidence in the record and failed to provide a sufficiently reasoned medical rationale.
- Claimed conditions
- Respiratory disorder, Pulmonary hypertension, Restrictive and obstructive lung diseases (including reticulonodular interstitial lung disease, fibrosis, asthma, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)), Sarcoidosis
- How they argued it
- Presumptive (no nexus needed)
- Exposure basis
- Burn pits / airborne hazards
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 6, 2026
- Citation
- A26001103
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 A26001103.
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.
- Dismissed
The appeal as to the proposed severance of service connection for sarcoidosis is dismissed. The Veteran's OSA and BHL are denied, but a compensable rating is granted for BHL.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), obstructive sleep apnea, and sarcoidosis due to potential service connection issues.
- Granted
The Veteran's PTSD is related to service and the claim for service connection has been granted. The claims of entitlement to service connection for hypertension, CAD, GERD, kidney disease, sarcoidosis, and OSA are remanded due to duty-to-assist errors.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim of service connection for a respiratory disorder, including claims related to asbestos exposure and claimed ionizing radiation exposure. The evidence did not support a link between any in-service exposures and the current diagnoses.
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