The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection due to a duty-to-assist error in developing his claim regarding contaminated drinking water exposure and for obtaining an adequate medical opinion on the secondary service connection claim.
The deciding factor: There was a failure to properly develop the Veteran's claim regarding contaminated drinking water exposure, which constitutes a pre-decisional duty to assist error. Additionally, there is a need for an adequate medical opinion addressing whether the Veteran's major depressive disorder with anxious distress would be less severe but for his service-connected tinnitus.
- Claimed conditions
- non-hodgkin's lymphoma, major depressive disorder recurrent moderate with anxious distress
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- March 20, 2026
- Citation
- A26025251
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. Read the original VA decision (opens in a new tab) using citation A26025251.
What this means for you
A remand sends an issue back for more development, often a new examination or missing records. It does not award the benefit or decide the final outcome. The original decision explains the additional work ordered.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's hypertension, kidney disease, prostate cancer, and non-hodgkin's lymphoma are granted as service-connected.,The Veteran's psychiatric condition is remanded for a determination on whether it is caused or aggravated by his service-connected disabilities.
- Dismissed
The appeal of the service connection for non-hodgkin's lymphoma at 100 percent disabling is dismissed as the claim has been fully resolved in favor of the Veteran.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, to include major depressive disorder recurrent moderate with anxious distress, unspecified depressive disorder, and obsessive-compulsive disorder.
- Dismissed
The appeal for service connection for non-hodgkin's lymphoma was dismissed as the Veteran opted into the modernized appeals system.
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