Citation Nr: 20069080 Decision Date: 10/26/20 Archive Date: 10/26/20 DOCKET NO. 12-33 662A DATE: October 26, 2020 REMANDED Entitlement to service connection for a gastrointestinal disability, to include esophageal ulceration, is remanded. REASONS FOR REMAND The Veteran served on active duty in the United States Army from August 1986 to November 1986 and from January 1988 to January 1992. Those periods of service are characterized as honorable. He subsequently served on active duty from January 1992 to November 1996, and that period of service is characterized as under other than honorable conditions and has been found to be a bar to VA benefits. 38 C.F.R. § 3.12 (d)(1). In March 2009 and November 2012, the Veteran’s requests to the Army Discharge Review Board for an upgrade in the character of service for the period from January 1992 to November 1996 were denied. This matter comes to the Board of Veterans’ Appeals (Board) on appeal from a September 2010 rating decision by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO) in Saint Petersburg, Florida. In February 2016, the Veteran testified during a videoconference hearing before the undersigned Veterans Law Judge. A copy of the transcript is of record. Entitlement to service connection for a gastrointestinal disability, to include esophageal ulceration, is remanded. In March 2016, the Veteran submitted evidence that he was again requesting an upgrade of the character of discharge for the third period of active duty service. Determinations as to honorable service will be made by the service departments and the findings shall be binding on the Department of Veterans Affairs. 38 C.F.R. § 3.14(d). Remand is necessary to allow VA to obtain the status of the request for upgrade. Additionally, it appears that service medical records may be outstanding, including from the Veteran's period of service from January 1992 to November 1996. On remand, additional attempts should be made to associate any outstanding service medical records with the claims file. Therefore, a remand is warranted for additional development. The matters are REMANDED for the following action: 1. After obtaining appropriate authorization, obtain any private treatment records identified by the Veteran that are not already of record. 2. Obtain all VA treatment records after June 30, 2020. 3. Obtain the Veteran's complete service personnel records and service medical records. 4. Contact the Army Discharge Review Board for a copy of the records related to the Veteran's 2016 appeal regarding the character of service from January 1992 to November 1996. Associate those records with the claims file. All attempts to locate those records, and all responses, must be documented in the claims file. If any records cannot be obtained after reasonable efforts have been made, issue a formal determination that the records do not exist or that further efforts to obtain the records would be futile, which should be documented in the claims file. The Veteran must be notified of the attempts made and why further attempts would be futile, and allowed the opportunity to provide the records, as provided in 38 U.S.C. § 5103A(b)(2) and 38 C.F.R. § 3.159(e). 5. If additional relevant documentation related to the claimed esophageal disability is incorporated into the record, the Veteran should be scheduled for a VA examination. The examiner is asked to opine whether it is as likely as not (50 percent probability or greater) that any diagnosed gastrointestinal disability is related to active service or any incident of active service that is not a bar to VA benefits. Additionally, the examiner is asked to also address whether any diagnosed gastrointestinal disability is at least as likely as not (50 percent probability or greater) etiologically due to or caused by the service-connected disabilities, or any treatment or medication for the service-connected disabilities. The examiner is also asked to opine whether it is at least as likely as not (50 percent probability or greater) that any diagnosed gastrointestinal disability is aggravated (increased in severity beyond the natural progress of the disorder) by the service-connected disabilities, or any treatment or medication for the service-connected disabilities. A complete rationale for any opinion expressed should be included in the examination report. Harvey P. Roberts Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans’ Appeals 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.