Citation Nr: 21004836 Decision Date: 01/28/21 Archive Date: 01/28/21 DOCKET NO. 15-40 071 DATE: January 28, 2021 REMANDED Entitlement to service connection for the cause of the Veteran’s death is remanded. REASONS FOR REMAND The Veteran served on active duty from December 1966 to September 1969, to include overseas service in Vietnam. He died in July 2013. The Appellant is his surviving spouse. The Appellant appeals a January 2014 rating decision by the Agency of Original Jurisdiction (AOJ). A Board of Veterans’ Appeals (Board) hearing was held in July 2018. However, November 2020 correspondence noted that a hearing transcript was unable to be produced due to audio malfunctions. Therefore, the November 2020 correspondence offered the Appellant another opportunity for a hearing. The Appellant has not responded. The Board notes that the Veteran was not service-connected for any disability prior to his death. The Appellant contends the Veteran was exposed to Agent Orange while serving in Vietnam. See September 2014 notice of disagreement (NOD). The Veteran served in Vietnam during the presumptive period. See September 1969 DD Form 214; September 2015 statement of the case. Therefore, in-service exposure to herbicide agents is conceded. A negative nexus opinion is of record. See July 2016 VA opinion. However, the opinion did not account for the Veteran’s exposure to herbicide agents. The July 2013 death certificate listed liver failure and cardiac cirrhosis as the causes of death. Dr. G.H.’s February 2015 letter found the Veteran’s death was caused by a long history of cardiac disease which caused liver failure and the diagnosis of cardiac cirrhosis. The July 2015 VA opinion found the Veteran’s liver failure was brought by right side heart failure which was caused by valvular heart disease. The Board notes that these conditions are not presumptive conditions under exposure to herbicide agents. Therefore, remand is required for another etiology opinion that accounts for the Veteran’s exposure to herbicide agents. The matter is REMANDED for the following action: 1. Obtain an opinion from an appropriately qualified clinician to determine the etiology of the Veteran’s fatal cardiac cirrhosis and liver failure. The evidentiary record, including a copy of this remand, must be made available to and be reviewed by the clinician. After the record review, the reviewing clinician is asked to respond to the following inquiries: Is it at least as likely as not that the Veteran’s fatal heart condition was incurred in, or is otherwise related to, his time on active service, to include exposure to herbicide agents? Is it at least as likely as not that the Veteran’s fatal liver failure was incurred in, or is otherwise related to, his time on active service, to include exposure to herbicide agents? The complete rationale for all opinions should be set forth and a discussion of the facts and medical principles involved would be of considerable assistance to the Board. If an opinion cannot be provided without resorting to mere speculation, the reviewing clinician must provide a complete explanation for why an opinion cannot be rendered. In so doing, the reviewing clinician must explain whether the inability to provide a more definitive opinion is the result of a need for additional information, or that he or she has exhausted the limits of current medical knowledge in providing an answer to that particular question(s). 2. After the above development has been completed, readjudicate the claim. If any benefit sought remains denied, provide the Appellant and her representative with a supplemental statement of the case (SSOC), and return the case to the Board, if otherwise in order. DONNIE R. HACHEY Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans’ Appeals Attorney for the Board A. Zheng, 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.