Citation Nr: 21026627
Decision Date: 05/03/21	Archive Date: 05/03/21

DOCKET NO. 20-09 326
DATE: May 3, 2021

ORDER

Service connection for bladder cancer is granted.

FINDING OF FACT

The Veteran served in the Republic of Vietnam during the Vietnam era and has a current diagnosis of bladder cancer.

CONCLUSION OF LAW

The criteria for entitlement to service connection for bladder cancer have been met. 38 U.S.C. § 5107 ; 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.102, 3.303, 3.307, 3.309.

REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDING AND CONCLUSION

The Veteran served on active duty from July 1965 to September 1987, which included service in the Republic of Vietnam during the Vietnam Era.

This case comes before the Board of Veterans' Appeals (Board) on appeal from an April 2016 rating decision by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO), which denied service connection for bladder cancer.

In April 2021, the Veteran testified before the undersigned Veterans Law Judge via video conference. 

VA regulations provide that a Veteran who had active military, naval, or air service in the Republic of Vietnam during the Vietnam Era shall be presumed to have been exposed during such service to an herbicide agent, unless there is affirmative evidence to establish that the Veteran was not exposed to any such agent during that service. See 38 C.F.R. § 3.307 (a)(6)(iii).  In such circumstances, service connection may be granted on a presumptive basis for the diseases listed in 38 U.S.C. § 1116 (a)(2) and 38 C.F.R. § 3.309 (e).

The Board takes judicial notice that the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021 amended 38 U.S.C. § 1116 (a)(2) to include bladder cancer to the list of diseases presumptively associated with exposure to herbicide agents.

As previously noted, the Veteran served in the Republic of Vietnam during the Vietnam Era.  As such, he is presumed to have been exposed to herbicide agents during such service.  The evidence also shows that he has a current diagnosis of bladder cancer, as reflected in December 2017 VA treatment records. 

Therefore, service connection for bladder cancer is warranted.

 

 

Bethany L. Buck

Veterans Law Judge

Board of Veterans' Appeals

Attorney for the Board	April Maddox, 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 This decision is not precedential and does not establish VA policies or interpretations of general applicability. 38 C.F.R. § 20.1303.