Citation Nr: 1305577	
Decision Date: 02/15/13    Archive Date: 02/21/13

DOCKET NO.  10-15 508	)	DATE
	)
	)

On appeal from the
Department of Veterans Affairs Regional Office in San Juan, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico


THE ISSUES

1.  Entitlement to service connection for a bilateral hearing loss disability.

2.  Entitlement to service connection for tinnitus, to include as secondary to a bilateral hearing loss disability. 

3.  Entitlement to service connection for a disability of the lumbar spine, to include lumbar strain and lumbar spondylosis.

4.  Entitlement to service connection for a bilateral knee disability. 

5.  Entitlement to service connection for venous insufficiency. 

6.  Entitlement to service connection for morbid obesity. 

7.  Entitlement to service connection for hypertension. 

8.  Entitlement to service connection for sleep apnea. 

ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD

D. Johnson, Counsel 


INTRODUCTION

The Veteran served on active duty from September 1980 to July 1983.  

This matter is before the Board of Veterans' Appeals (Board) on appeal of a November 2009 rating decision of a Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO). 

The appeal is REMANDED to the RO via the Appeals Management Center (AMC), in Washington, DC.  VA will notify the appellant if further action is required.


REMAND

The Veteran's service treatment records are not of record although it is clear that the RO reviewed those records as part of its initial determination.  As the Veteran's claims file is incomplete, the Board cannot proceed with adjudication of his claims at this time.  To ensure that VA has met its duty to assist pursuant to 38 U.S.C.A. § 5103A, the claims must be remanded so that the missing service treatment records can be located and associated with the claim file or; if the records are not found, so that the Veteran may be advised of alternative sources of information which may substantiate his claims.

Accordingly, the case is REMANDED for the following action:

1.  Request that the Veteran provide any service records in his possession and advise him of alternative sources of information which may substantiate his claims.  

2.  Contact the National Personnel Records Center, and/or any other appropriate repository of records and obtain the Veteran's service treatment records.  Efforts to locate such records must be documented and must continue until it is reasonably certain that such records do not exist and that further efforts to obtain those records would be futile.  If no service records are found, a formal finding of unavailability must be issued and the Veteran must be notified.  The case must be then returned to the Board for further appellate review, if otherwise in order.

The appellant has the right to submit additional evidence and argument on the 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. 2012).



_________________________________________________
RONALD W. SCHOLZ
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) (2012).