Citation Nr: 21000908 Decision Date: 01/06/21 Archive Date: 01/06/21 DOCKET NO. 18-20 797 DATE: January 6, 2021 REMANDED Entitlement to service connection for cause of the Veteran's death is remanded. REASONS FOR REMAND The Veteran served on active duty in the United States Army from January 1952 to January 1954. The Veteran died December 27, 1991. The appellant is his surviving spouse. In March 2020, the appellant testified at a Board hearing before the undersigned Veteran’s law judge. A transcript of the hearing is of record. In the August 2020 Board decision, the Board found that new and material evidence had been received for the claim of entitlement to service connection for cause of the Veteran’s death and reopened the claim. The claim was remanded for the agency or original jurisdiction (AOJ) to obtain any outstanding VA medical records from the Veteran’s December 1991 hospitalization and to obtain a VA opinion to clarify whether the Veteran had a diagnosis of colon cancer prior to his death. In August 2020 correspondence from the AOJ, it was noted that the Veteran’s claims folder contained all medical records from the Tucson VA Medical Center from December 1991. Additionally, a VA medical opinion was obtained in August 2020 regarding whether the Veteran had a diagnosis of colon cancer prior to his death. Accordingly, the Board finds that the AOJ has substantially complied with the August 2020 Board remand directive. See Stegall v. West, 11 Vet. App. 268 (1998). Nevertheless, the Board finds that further development is needed to properly adjudicate the appellant’s claim for reasons discussed below. 38 U.S.C. § 5103A; 38 C.F.R. § 3.159. Entitlement to service connection for cause of the Veteran's death is remanded. The appellant contends that the Veteran was exposed to ionizing radiation during his active duty service. Specifically, she contends that he was stationed at Camp Desert Rock and present for a nuclear test sometime in 1953. Furthermore, she contends that as a result of this exposure, the Veteran’s health continuously deteriorated following his discharge and ultimately led to his compromised health preceding his death. In October 2016 correspondence from the Nuclear Test Personnel Review Program, they acknowledged that U.S. Army unit morning reports noted the Veteran’s presence at Camp Desert Rock at the Nevada Test Site from March 18 to 26, 1953. Based on this correspondence and the accompanying military personnel records, the Board concedes that the Veteran was exposed to radiation while on active duty service. The Veteran’s death certificate, issued in January 1992, indicates that the Veteran’s immediate cause of death was cardiac arrest due to or as a consequence of right colectomy, end of stage renal disease secondary to diabetes mellitus, and cadaveric renal transplant. The Board notes that none of the diseases listed on the death certificate qualify for presumptive service connection for radiation-exposed Veterans. 38 C.F.R. § 3.309 (d)(2). Although the Veteran’s conditions did not entitle him to presumptive service connection under 38 C.F.R. § 3.311, the appellant is still entitled to a medical opinion as to whether the conditions are directly related to the Veteran’s in-service radiation exposure. See Combee v. Brown, 34 F.3d 1039, 1043-44 (Fed. Cir. 1994). Accordingly, the Board finds that a remand is required for a VA medical opinion that addresses whether the conditions that led to the Veteran’s cause of death are related to his in-service radiation exposure. The matters are REMANDED for the following action: Obtain a VA medical opinion to determine the nature and etiology of the conditions noted on the Veteran’s death certificate, including cardiac arrest, right colectomy, end of stage renal disease, diabetes mellitus, and cadaveric renal transplant. The examiner is asked to offer an opinion as to whether it is at least as likely as not that any of the Veteran’s conditions listed on his death certificate are related to his exposure to radiation while assigned to the Nevada Test Site at Camp Desert Rock in March 1953. Any opinion expressed should be accompanied by a complete rationale. L. M. BARNARD Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans’ Appeals Attorney for the Board M. Hartford, 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.