Citation Nr: 21001956 Decision Date: 01/12/21 Archive Date: 01/12/21 DOCKET NO. 16-45 995 DATE: January 12, 2021 ORDER Entitlement to service connection for bladder cancer is granted. FINDING OF FACT The Veteran is presumed to have been exposed to herbicides during his service in the Republic of Vietnam. The Veteran’s bladder cancer is presumed to be related to in-service herbicide exposure. CONCLUSION OF LAW The criteria for presumptive service connection for bladder cancer have been met. 38 U.S.C. §§ 1110, 1116(a)(2), 1131, 5107; 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.102, 3.303; National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2021. REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDING AND CONCLUSION The Veteran has active service from October 1964 to February 1965, and from May 1968 to July 1980. This case is before the Board of Veterans’ Appeals (Board) from a July 2014 rating decision by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO). In October 2019, the Board remanded these matters to the RO for additional development, specifically a VA examination. Finding there has been substantial compliance with the Board’s remand directives in accordance with Stegall v. West, 11 Vet. App. 268, 271 (1998), the Board may proceed with appellate review. Bladder Cancer. The Veteran claims entitlement to service connection for bladder cancer, not other was specified, due to exposure to chemicals and contaminants, including diesel fuel, JP4, aircraft engine oil, MIL 23699, aircraft hydraulic oil MIL 5606 preservative oil MIL 1010 (9/02/2014 NOD; 10/21/2020 VA 21-4138 Statement In Support of Claim). The Veteran’s in-service exposure to herbicide agents during Vietnam service has been conceded (10/29/2020 Rating Decision – Narrative, pg. 3). In this case, the Veteran’s diagnosis with bladder cancer is confirmed (9/29/2020 C&P Exam, pg. 3). The Veteran’s service in Vietnam is also confirmed by the record. The Veteran served in the Republic of Vietnam from November 1968 to October 1969 and from October 1970 to July 1971 (1/08/2008 VA 21-3101 Request for Information). As his dates of Vietnam service fall between January 9, 1962 and May 7, 1975, exposure to herbicide agents is presumed (3/25/1976 Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty; 1/15/1970 Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty) 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.307 (a)(6)(iii). Service connection may be granted for disability resulting from disease or injury incurred in or aggravated by active military service. 38 U.S.C. § 1110; 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.303, 3.304. Service connection may be granted for any disease diagnosed after discharge when all the evidence, including that pertinent to service, establishes that the disease was incurred in service. 38 C.F.R. § 3.303(d). Generally, establishing service connection requires medical or, in certain circumstances, lay evidence of (1) a current disability; (2) in-service incurrence or aggravation of a disease or injury; and (3) a nexus between the claimed in-service disease or injury and the present disability. See Davidson v. Shinseki, 581 F.3d 1313, 1316 (Fed. Cir. 2009); Hickson v. West, 12 Vet. App. 247, 253 (1999). If a veteran was exposed to an herbicide agent during active military, naval, or air service in Vietnam, then certain diseases shall be service connected even though there is no record of such disease during service. For the purposes of this section, the term "herbicide agent" means a chemical in an herbicide used in support of the United States and allied military operations in the Republic of Vietnam during the Vietnam era. 38 U.S.C. § 1116; 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.307(a)(6), 3.309(e), 3.313. The National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2021 has added three disorders to the list of diseases presumptively associated with exposure to herbicide agents. Specifically, it amended 38 U.S.C. § 1116(a)(2) to include parkinsonism, bladder cancer, and hypothyroidism. In light of the above, service connection for bladder cancer is warranted. Accordingly, the Veteran’s claim is granted. 38 U.S.C. § 5107; 38 C.F.R. § 3.102. Eric S. Leboff Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans’ Appeals Attorney for the Board P. A. Myers 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.