Citation Nr: 18150145
Decision Date: 11/14/18	Archive Date: 11/14/18

DOCKET NO. 16-45 324
DATE:	November 14, 2018
REMANDED
Service connection for hepatitis C is remanded.
Service connection for herpes is remanded.
Service connection for diabetes mellitus is remanded.
Service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder to include posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is remanded.
REASONS FOR REMAND
The Veteran was a member of the United States Army Reserve from 1982 to 2003, to include periods of service from February 1982 to June 1982 and January 1991 to March 1991.
In January 2013 the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO) determined that the Veteran’s service records were not available for review and informed the Veteran of the steps taken to obtain his service records.  The Board of Veterans’ Appeals (Board) notes that VA’s duties to assist, to provide reasons and bases for its findings and conclusions, and to consider carefully the benefit-of-the-doubt rule, are therefore heightened.  
In his August 2016 VA Form 9 the Veteran asserted that he was diagnosed and treated for diabetes mellitus in 1990 at the VA in Detroit, Michigan and that he was diagnosed and treated for hepatitis C in the 1990’s at the VA in Detroit Michigan with continued treatment in New Orleans.  The only VA treatment reports in the record are from May 2007 forward and the record is absent evidence of attempts to obtain VA treatment reports from the 1990’s.  The Veteran has also asserted he was treated for his disabilities at Fort Benning, Georgia, to include being diagnosed with herpes there in the 1990’s.  The case is remanded to obtain missing records with the Veteran’s assistance.  
The Veteran is encouraged to assist VA in identifying records.  It is noted the information provided thus far has been to some degree inconsistent.  For example, in a January 2013 statement the Veteran reported being affected by diabetes since 1997, herpes since 1975, hepatitis C since 1997, and PTSD since 1975.  
The matters are REMANDED for the following action:
1. Ask the Veteran to identify all outstanding treatment records relevant to his service connection claims.  
All identified VA records should be added to the claims file.  The Agency of Original Jurisdiction (AOJ) should associate with the claims file all outstanding VA treatment records for the Veteran from the Detroit, Michigan and New Orleans, Louisiana Health Care Systems from 1990 to the present.  
With the Veteran’s assistance, attempts should be made to obtain records from any medical facility where he received treatment at Fort Benning, Georgia.  
All other properly identified records should be obtained if the necessary authorization to obtain the records is provided by the Veteran.  

If any records are not available, or the Veteran identifies sources of treatment but does not provide authorization to obtain records, appropriate action should be taken (see 38 C.F.R. § 3.159(c)-(e)), to include notifying the Veteran of the unavailability of the records.
2. If additional records are received, the AOJ should undertake all necessary development deemed appropriate as a result of the new evidence prior to readjudicating the claims.

 
Nathan Kroes
Veterans Law Judge
Board of Veterans’ Appeals
ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD	M. Gonzalez, Associate Counsel