Citation Nr: 21013439 Decision Date: 03/09/21 Archive Date: 03/09/21 DOCKET NO. 14-32 120A DATE: March 9, 2021 REMANDED Entitlement to service connection for leukemia, to include myelodysplastic syndrome is remanded. REASONS FOR REMAND The Veteran served on active duty from October 1951 to October 1983. The Appellant is his surviving spouse. This matter is before the Board of Veterans’ Appeals (Board) on appeal of a July 2013 rating decision of the Houston, Texas, Regional Office (RO) of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). The Board was notified that the Veteran died in May 2017. The Veteran’s surviving spouse was substituted as the Appellant for the purpose of processing the Veteran’s claims to completion. See Breedlove v. Shinseki, 24 Vet. App. 7 (2010). In July 2019, the Board issued a prior decision remanding the issue now before the Board. The claim for leukemia was remanded for a more thorough VA medical opinion as the prior two VA opinions were found to be inadequate. Entitlement to service connection for leukemia, to include myelodysplastic syndrome is remanded. A remand is required to attempt to obtain Social Security Administration (SSA) records. VA has a duty to assist claimants to obtain evidence needed to substantiate a claim. 38 U.S.C. § 5103A (2012); 38 C.F.R. § 3.159 (c) (2019). VA must make as many requests as are necessary to obtain relevant records from a Federal department or agency, including, but not limited to, records from Federal agencies such as the SSA. 38 C.F.R. § 3.159 (c)(2). This includes relevant Social Security Administration (SSA) records. Golz v. Shinseki, 590 F.3d 1317, 1321-23 (Fed. Cir. 2010). In this regard, an SSA Inquiry reflects that the Veteran was in receipt of disability benefits as of September 2001. These records have not been obtained or associated with the claims file, nor are any attempts to obtain said records documented. These records may be relevant to the claim, as they may contain treatment records pertinent to the Veteran’s leukemia and myelodysplastic syndrome. (Continued on the next page)   The matters are REMANDED for the following action: Contact the SSA and obtain a copy of that agency’s decision concerning the Veteran’s claim for disability benefits, including any medical records used to make the decision. If any requested records are not available, or the search for any such records otherwise yields negative results, that fact must clearly be documented in the electronic claims file. Efforts to obtain these records must continue until it is determined that they do not exist or that further attempts to obtain them would be futile. The non-existence or unavailability of such records must be verified and this should be documented for the record. Required notice must be provided to the Veteran and his representative. Jennifer White Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans’ Appeals Attorney for the Board Department of Veterans Affairs 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.