Citation Nr: 20046795
Decision Date: 07/13/20	Archive Date: 07/13/20

DOCKET NO. 15-14 397A
DATE: July 13, 2020

ORDER TO VACATE

The portion of the February 14, 2019 Board decision that denied entitlement to service connection for hypertension is vacated.

REASONS AND BASES FOR VACATUR

The Board of Veterans’ Appeals (Board) may vacate an appellate decision at any time upon request of the appellant or his or her representative, or on the Board’s own motion, when an appellant has been denied due process of law or when benefits were allowed based on false or fraudulent evidence.  38 U.S.C. § 7104; 38 C.F.R. § 20.1000.  

In May 2015, the Veteran submitted a substantive appeal (VA Form 9) in which he asserted that his hypertension was secondary to service-connected disability because he can no longer perform the exercises necessary to control his blood pressure due to degenerative arthritis.  See May 2015 VA Form 9 at 2.  He also asserted that medical evidence shows that mental health conditions, such as depression and anxiety, are associated with increased occurrence of chronic diseases, including cardiovascular disease.  See id. at 1.

In June 2018, the Veteran testified at a videoconference hearing before a Veterans Law Judge (VLJ) who is no longer at the Board.  On February 14, 2019, the Veteran was notified of a Board decision signed by that VLJ that, among other things, denied entitlement to service connection for hypertension.  The February 14, 2019 Board decision determined that service connection for hypertension was not warranted on a direct or presumptive basis.

In June 2019, the Veteran filed a Motion for Reconsideration of certain issues addressed by the February 14, 2019 Board decision, including entitlement to service connection for hypertension.  He argued that the February 14, 2019 Board decision did not address whether entitlement to service connection for hypertension was warranted as secondary to certain service-connected disabilities.  See June 2019 Motion for Reconsideration at 1-2.

Here, the Veteran explicitly raised a theory of entitlement to secondary service connection for hypertension.  However, as the February 14, 2019 Board decision did not address this theory of entitlement, he was denied due process of law.  38 C.F.R. § 20.1000(a).  Accordingly, the portion of the February 14, 2019 Board decision addressing the issue of entitlement to service connection for hypertension is vacated.  

The Veteran is advised that the merits of this issue, as well as his request for reconsideration as to issues other than entitlement to service connection for hypertension, will be addressed separately.

 

 

K. OSBORNE

Veterans Law Judge

Board of Veterans’ Appeals

Attorney for the Board	D.M. Badaczewski, 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.