Citation Nr: 0814235 Decision Date: 04/30/08 Archive Date: 05/08/08 DOCKET NO. 06-39 459 ) DATE ) ) On appeal from the Department of Veterans Affairs Regional Office in Hartford, Connecticut THE ISSUE Entitlement to service connection for viral bronchitis REPRESENTATION Appellant represented by: Veterans of the Vietnam War, Inc. INTRODUCTION The veteran served on active duty from February 22, 2001 to August 21, 2001, and from December 2003 to March 2005. This appeal is REMANDED to the RO via the Appeals Management Center (AMC), in Washington, DC. VA will notify you if further action is required on your part. REMAND The provisions of the Veterans Claims Assistance Act of 2000 (VCAA), codified at 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.102, 3.156(a), 3.159, 3.326(a), and as interpreted by the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims (the Court) are applicable to this claim. The veteran requested and was scheduled for a videoconference hearing before the undersigned Veterans' Law Judge to be held on February 7, 2008. She failed to appear for the hearing. In a letter dated February 12, 2008, the veteran explained that she was too ill to travel on her scheduled hearing day. If a veteran fails to appear for a scheduled hearing, and desires that the hearing be rescheduled, a motion must be filed. If an appellant (or when a hearing only for oral argument by a representative has been authorized, the representative) fails to appear for a scheduled hearing and a request for postponement has not been received and granted, the case will be processed as though the request for a hearing had been withdrawn. No further request for a hearing will be granted in the same appeal unless such failure to appear was with good cause and the cause for the failure to appear arose under such circumstances that a timely request for postponement could not have been submitted prior to the scheduled hearing date. A motion for a new hearing date following a failure to appear must be in writing; must be submitted not more than 15 days following the original hearing date; and must set forth the reason, or reasons, for the failure to appear at the originally scheduled hearing and the reason, or reasons, why a timely request for postponement could not have been submitted. 38 C.F.R. § 20.702 (2007). A review of the October 2007 letter sent to her by the RO regarding the hearing process does not provide any information on the procedure for filing a motion to reschedule a hearing based on good cause shown. The letter states, "If I fail to appear for a hearing without good cause, I may forfeit my right to a hearing on my appeal." The undersigned will accept the veteran's February 12, 2008 letter as establishing good cause for her failure to appear for her scheduled hearing. Accordingly, the case is REMANDED for the following action: The RO should schedule the veteran for a videoconference hearing. The appellant has the right to submit additional evidence and argument on the matter or matters the Board has remanded. Kutscherousky v. West, 12 Vet. App. 369 (1999). This claim must be afforded expeditious treatment. The law requires that all claims that are remanded by the Board of Veterans' Appeals or by the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims for additional development or other appropriate action must be handled in an expeditious manner. See 38 U.S.C.A. §§ 5109B, 7112 (West Supp. 2007). _________________________________________________ RENÉE M. PELLETIER Veterans Law Judge, Board of Veterans' Appeals Under 38 U.S.C.A. § 7252 (West 2002), only a decision of the Board of Veterans' Appeals is appealable to the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims. This remand is in the nature of a preliminary order and does not constitute a decision of the Board on the merits of your appeal. 38 C.F.R. § 20.1100(b) (2007).