Citation Nr: A20007316 Decision Date: 04/30/20 Archive Date: 04/30/20 DOCKET NO. 191030-40435 DATE: April 30, 2020 ORDER Entitlement to service connection for ischemic heart disease is granted. FINDING OF FACT The Veteran has a current diagnosis of ischemic heart disease and served in Vietnam during the Vietnam era. CONCLUSION OF LAW The criteria for service connection for ischemic heart disease have been met. 38 U.S.C. §§ 1110, 1116, 5107(b); 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.307 (a)(6), 3.309(e). REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDING AND CONCLUSION The Veteran served in the Air Force from February 1968 to June 1975 and from November 1975 to March 1990. The Board notes that the rating decision on appeal was issued in September 2019. In October 2019, the Veteran opted into the Appeal Modernization Act (AMA) review system by submitting a timely Decision Review Request: Board Appeal (Notice of Disagreement), VA Form 10182, and electing the direct review lane.  Accordingly, the Board will consider the evidence of record as of the date of the September 2019 rating decision. In the September 2019 AMA rating decision, the Agency of Original Jurisdiction (AOJ) found that the Veteran’s service medals “indicate[] boots on the ground” in Vietnam and the existence of an ischemic heart disease at a compensable evaluation. The Board is bound by these favorable findings. 38 C.F.R § 3.1049(c). Entitlement to service connection for ischemic heart disease is granted. The Veteran seeks service connection for ischemic heart disease, contending that he was exposed to herbicide agents while serving in Vietnam. The question for the Board, therefore, is whether the Veteran has a current disability that began during service or is at least as likely as not related to service, including as due to exposure to herbicide agents. Service connection may be granted for disability resulting from disease or injury incurred in or aggravated by active service. 38 U.S.C. §§ 1110, 5107; 38 C.F.R. § 3.303. The three-element test for service connection requires evidence of: (1) a current disability; (2) in-service incurrence or aggravation of a disease or injury; and (3) a causal relationship between the current disability and the in-service disease or injury. Shedden v. Principi, 381 F.3d 1163, 1166 -67 (Fed. Cir. 2004). For those who had active service in the Republic of Vietnam between January 9, 1962, and May 7, 1975, service connection for certain enumerated diseases, such as ischemic heart disease, may be based upon presumed exposure to an herbicide agent, such as Agent Orange. 38 U.S.C. § 1116; 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.307(a)(6)(iii), 3.309(e). The Board concludes that the Veteran has a current disability of coronary artery disease that is presumed to have been caused by in-service exposure to herbicide agents. 38 U.S.C. §§ 1110, 1116, 5107(b); 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.307(a)(6), 3.309(e). The Veteran has submitted private medical records indicating a current diagnosis of ischemic heart disease. For example, in September 2018, the Veteran submitted a privately completed Disability Benefits Questionnaire (DBQ) that indicates the Veteran has been diagnosed with ischemic heart disease. Moreover, available medical records document treatment for diagnosed coronary artery disease, which is included in the scope of the meaning of ischemic heart disease under 38 C.F.R. § 3.309 (e). In the September 2019 AMA decision, the AOJ made a favorable finding that the Veteran currently has ischemic heart disease at a compensable evaluation. As such, the first Shedden element, a current disability, is met. As noted above, the September 2019 AMA decision on appeal includes the favorable finding that the Veteran served “boots on the ground” in Vietnam, in addition to the Veteran currently having ischemic heart disease at a compensable evaluation. Accordingly, service connection for ischemic heart disease is warranted. 38 C.F.R. § 3.309 (e). The appeal is granted. L. CHU Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans’ Appeals Attorney for the Board P.A. Infante 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.