Citation Nr: 18145421
Decision Date: 10/29/18	Archive Date: 10/29/18

DOCKET NO. 15-13 802
DATE:	October 29, 2018
REMANDED
Entitlement to a disability rating in excess of 40 percent for service-connected prostate cancer is remanded.
Entitlement to a compensable rating for service-connected glomerulonephritis and nephrosclerosis is remanded.
Entitlement to a compensable rating for service-connected erectile dysfunction is remanded.
Entitlement to a compensable rating for service-connected hypertension is remanded. 
REASONS FOR REMAND
The Veteran served on active duty in the United States Marine Corps from September 1974 to September 1977 and from October 1979 to October 1981. 
This matter comes before the Board of Veterans’ Appeals (Board) on appeal from a March 2012 rating decision and an August 2012 rating decision of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO) in Louisville, Kentucky (Agency of Original Jurisdiction (AOJ)).
The Veteran testified at a videoconference hearing before the undersigned in June 2018. A transcript of the proceeding is of record.
1. Entitlement to a disability rating in excess of 40 percent for service-connected prostate cancer is remanded.
2. Entitlement to a compensable rating for service-connected glomerulonephritis and nephrosclerosis is remanded.
3. Entitlement to a compensable rating for service-connected erectile dysfunction is remanded.
4. Entitlement to a compensable rating for service-connected hypertension is remanded. 
Regrettably, a remand is necessary to ensure that due process is followed and that there is a complete record upon which to decide the issues on appeal, in order to afford the Veteran every possible consideration. 
In a Form 9 filing in May 2015, it was argued that the Veteran had been receiving treatment at a private facility called Trinity Medical Center from approximately 2008 to the present for his ongoing medical conditions. Furthermore, the Veteran requested, if possible, that the AOJ review records from an extended hospital stay in 1986. 
While the latter-referenced documentation may not necessarily be pertinent to the Veteran’s claims, the importance of obtaining the Veteran’s private treatment records was stressed during his June 2018 hearing. While some treatment records were associated with the record after this correspondence, the specifically-noted records from Trinity Medical Center were not included. As such, the Board will remand to permit the AOJ the opportunity to acquire these records. 


The matters are REMANDED for the following action:
1. Assist the Veteran in associating with the claims folder all relevant private treatment records identified, including those from Trinity Medical Center from 2008 to present. 
2. Associate with the record the Veteran’s most recent VA treatment records, specifically those from June 2018 to present. 
3. Thereafter, readjudicate the claims. If any benefit sought on appeal remains denied, furnish the Veteran and his representative, if any, a supplemental statement of the case and an appropriate period of time to respond.
 
T. MAINELLI
Veterans Law Judge
Board of Veterans’ Appeals
ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD	Victoria A. Narducci, Associate Counsel