Citation Nr: 21001482
Decision Date: 01/08/21	Archive Date: 01/08/21

DOCKET NO. 18-15 001
DATE: January 8, 2021

REMANDED

Entitlement to service connection for Veteran’s cause of death is remanded.

REASONS FOR REMAND

The Veteran served March 1960 to April 1967 in the United States Navy

The Veteran died in September 2016 and the appellant is the Veteran’s surviving spouse.

Entitlement to service connection for Veteran’s cause of death is remanded.

Unfortunately, there has not been substantial compliance with the Board’s previous June 2020 remand directives regarding the issue of entitlement to service connection for the Veteran’s cause of death.  Another remand is required.  Stegall v. West, 11 Vet. App. 268, 271 (1998).

The claim must be remanded again because the October 2020 addendum medical opinion again failed to address the private medical opinion identified by the Board.

The matters are REMANDED for the following action:

1.  Obtain an addendum opinion from an appropriate clinician regarding whether the Veteran’s chronic obstructive lung disease that was noted to be a contributing cause of the Veteran’s death was at least as likely as not related to his conceded asbestos exposure during active duty service. 

The examiner must specifically address the June 2018 opinion of Dr. LD and the treatment records noting pleural plaques that were “likely from prior asbestos related exposure.”

A complete rationale must be provided for any opinion offered.

2.  Confirm that the VA medical opinion provided comports with this remand, specifically that the examiner has addressed the opinion identified by the Board in the remand directives. If not, get an addendum.

 

 

M.E. Larkin

Veterans Law Judge

Board of Veterans’ Appeals

Attorney for the Board	P.S. McLeod

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 This decision is not precedential and does not establish VA policies or interpretations of general applicability. 38 C.F.R. § 20.1303.