Citation Nr: 20004162 Decision Date: 01/16/20 Archive Date: 01/16/20 DOCKET NO. 18-45 911A DATE: January 16, 2020 REMANDED Service connection for the cause of death of the Veteran.   REASONS FOR REMAND The Veteran served on active duty from May 1968 to February 1970, with additional service in the Florida National Guard. He died in April 2017. The appellant is his surviving spouse. The claim is on appeal from a September 2017 rating decision. In December 2019, the Board informed the appellant that the case had been stayed by the Secretary as it may ben affected by the Blue Water Navy Vietnam Veterans Act of 2019 (BWN Act). Effective January 1, 2020, the stay was lifted. Service connection for the cause of death of the Veteran. The appellant maintains that the cause of the Veteran’s death was related to his military service. She states that her husband worked on the flight deck of the U.S.S. Bon Homme Richard naval vessel while stationed in Vietnam. She claims that he would clean airplanes returning from spraying Agent Orange, but also that his duties took him onshore to retrieve bodies of the fallen soldiers. The appellant also submitted letters that she asserts were written by the Veteran to her during his time on the ship, and demonstrate that he spent time ashore in Vietnam. The appellant states that at the time of the Veteran’s death, he “was on so much medication, with so many Agent Orange diseases.” See Appellant’s June and July 2018 correspondences. The April 2017 Certificate of Death identifies the Veteran’s immediate cause of death as severe atherosclerotic obstruction of the left anterior descending coronary artery. A review of the Veteran’s service treatment records (STRs) do not show diagnosis or treatment of heart problems during service or manifesting to a compensable degree within one year of separation from service. However, the STRs indicate that the Veteran was stationed on the U.S.S. Bon Homme Richard during service while in Vietnam. In light of the recent decision in Procopio v. Wilkie, 913 F.3d 1371 (Fed. Cir. 2019) and the BWN Act, the Veteran would be entitled to a finding that he was presumptively exposed to herbicide agents if the evidence of record establishes that his service was within the 12 nautical mile territorial sea of the Republic of Vietnam. See 38 U.S.C. § 1116A. In this case, the appellate record does not contain the information necessary to make a determination whether the Veteran ever crossed the 12 nautical mile threshold while serving aboard the U.S.S. Bon Homme Richard. Accordingly, a remand for additional factual development is warranted. Furthermore, in July 2017, the appellant stated the Veteran had been seeing a psychiatrist at the West Palm Beach VA Medical Center (VAMC) for a few years, at least in part for his experiences onshore in Vietnam. It does not appear that these records have been requested or associated with the Veteran’s file, and are potentially relevant to the appellant’s claim for cause of death. The identified treatment records should be obtained so that the adjudication of the appellant’s claim is a fully informed one. In any case, sufficiently identified VA medical records are to be obtained under the duty to assist, regardless of their relevance. See Sullivan v. McDonald, 815 F.3d 786, 793 (Fed. Cir. 2016). The matters are REMANDED for the following action: (Continued on the next page)   1. Obtain the Veteran’s treatment records from the West Palm Beach VAMC. 2. Pursuant to the BWN Act and the decision in Procopio, conduct the necessary development to determine whether the Veteran entered the 12 nautical mile territorial sea of Vietnam while serving aboard the U.S.S. Bon Homme Richard. RYAN T. KESSEL Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans’ Appeals Attorney for the Board S. Morford, 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.