Citation Nr: 20002185 Decision Date: 01/10/20 Archive Date: 01/09/20 DOCKET NO. 18-44 810 DATE: January 10, 2020 REMANDED Entitlement to Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC) based on service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death, to include as due to exposure to herbicides is remanded. Entitlement to DIC under 38 U.S.C. § 1318 is remanded. REASONS FOR REMAND The Veteran served on active duty from October 1960 to September 1962 and from March 1964 to December 1982. He died in September 2016. The Appellant is his surviving spouse. The Appellant asserts that the Veteran’s bladder cancer resulted from in-service exposure to herbicides; VA has conceded such exposure. In July 2019, the Board remanded this issue in order to obtain an opinion regarding whether the Veteran’s bladder cancer was a result of his exposure to herbicides during service. Further, the examiner was also asked to opine specifically on the medical articles showing limited evidence suggesting a relationship between exposure to Agent Orange and the development of bladder cancer received from the Appellant in September 2018. In August 2019, an opinion was obtained, however it was silent with regards to the submitted medical articles. Therefore, this opinion is not compliant with the Board’s July 2019 directives. As such, the matter must be remanded for compliance with the Board’s prior remand directives. Stegall v. West, 11 Vet. App. 268 (1998). The 1318 claim is inextricable intertwined with the claim for cause of death being remanded. The matters are REMANDED for the following action: Obtain an addendum opinion from an appropriate clinician to address whether the Veteran’s exposure to herbicides caused the Veteran’s bladder cancer; specifically addressing the findings in the medical articles indicating that there is suggestive evidence of bladder cancer being associated with exposure to Agent Orange. [Note: The date of receipt of the evidence in the electronic file is September 14, 2018.] JOHN Z. JONES Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans’ Appeals Attorney for the Board Jorge Barroso, Associate Counsel The Board’s decision in this case is binding only with respect to the instant matter decided. This decision is not precedential and does not establish VA policies or interpretations of general applicability. 38 C.F.R. § 20.1303.