Citation Nr: 20002489 Decision Date: 01/14/20 Archive Date: 01/10/20 DOCKET NO. 16-24 841 DATE: January 14, 2020 REMANDED Entitlement to service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death is remanded. REASONS FOR REMAND The Veteran served on active duty in the United States Navy from August 1960 to December 1980. The Veteran died in November 2012. The appellant is his surviving spouse. This appeal comes before the Board of Veterans’ Appeals (Board) from a November 2013 rating decision of a Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Pension Management Center in Saint Paul, Minnesota. In May 2019, the appellant testified at a video conference hearing before the undersigned Veterans Law Judge. A transcript of the hearing is available in the record. Entitlement to service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death is remanded. The appellant argues that the Veteran’s death was caused by non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, which in turn was the result of exposure to herbicide agents including Agent Orange during the Veteran’s active service. A veteran who, during active military service, served in the Republic of Vietnam during the Vietnam era and has a disease listed at 38 C.F.R. § 3.309(e) shall be presumed to have been exposed during such service to an herbicide agent, such as Agent Orange, unless there is affirmative evidence to establish that the Veteran was not exposed to any such agent during that service. 38 C.F.R. § 3.307 (a)(6)(iii). Service in Vietnam includes offshore service if the location is not more than 12 nautical miles seaward of the Republic of Vietnam based on certain parameters annotated in 38 U.S.C. § 1116A. Diseases presumed to be associated with herbicide exposure are listed in 38 C.F.R. § 3.309(e). Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma is among the presumptive conditions listed in § 3.309(e). The appellant has specifically argued that the Veteran’s deployments aboard the USS Kitty Hawk resulted in his exposure to Agent Orange while the vessel was offshore of the Republic of Vietnam. The Veteran was assigned to Fighter Squadron 111 (VF-111), which frequently deployed aboard the Kitty Hawk. A preliminary review of the Veteran’s military personnel records indicate the Veteran was at sea for at least one Western Pacific cruise, from October 1963 to July 1964. See February 1965 Military Personnel Record (“Administrative Remarks” briefly notating this deployment). However, the claims file does not contain information regarding the USS Kitty Hawk’s movements or locations during that Western Pacific deployment. As a result, the Board is unable to determine from the present evidence of record whether the Veteran was within 12 nautical miles offshore of the Republic of Vietnam, as required by 38 U.S.C. § 1116A. The duty to assist includes assisting the claimant in the procurement of relevant records. 38 U.S.C. § 5103A; 38 C.F.R. § 3.159(c). Further development is warranted to determine whether the Veteran’s active service caused him to be within 12 nautical miles offshore of the Republic of Vietnam during his active service. The matters are REMANDED for the following action: 1. Attempt to verify with JSRRC or other appropriate agencies whether the USS Kitty Hawk was within 12 nautical miles offshore of the Republic of Vietnam while the Veteran was aboard, between October 1963 and July 1964. 2. If the above attempt is unsuccessful, attempt to verify with JSRRC or other appropriate agencies whether the Veteran’s other duty assignments ever caused him to be deployed to within 12 nautical miles offshore of the Republic of Vietnam at any time from the Veteran’s enlistment in the Navy in August 1960, until May 1975 when the statutory presumptive period for Blue Water Agent Orange exposure ends. K. J. ALIBRANDO Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans’ Appeals Attorney for the Board J. Hermsdorfer, 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.