Citation Nr: 21032574 Decision Date: 05/27/21 Archive Date: 05/27/21 DOCKET NO. 15-35 482A DATE: May 27, 2021 REMANDED Entitlement to service connection for a lung disorder, to include chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is remanded. REASONS FOR REMAND The Veteran served on active duty from March 1970 to February 1974. This matter comes before the Board of Veterans' Appeals (Board) on appeal from a May 2014 rating decision issued by a Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO). Although the Veteran requested a hearing before a Board member via video-conferencing technology in his October 2015 substantive appeal, he failed to report on the scheduled date in November 2018. He did not provide any reason for not attending the scheduled hearing nor did he request that it be rescheduled. Thus, his request for a Board hearing is deemed withdrawn. Entitlement to service connection for a lung disorder, to include COPD is remanded. In May 2019, the Board remanded the appeal for further development. The remand directed that the Veteran be afforded a VA examination to determine the nature and etiology of any current lung disorder. Notably, he served as a metal processing specialist/welder in the service. In providing an opinion as to the etiology of any lung disorder, the VA examiner was asked to expressly discuss: (1) the Veteran's complaints of shortness of breath/chest pain as noted in his service treatment records (STRs) prior to the Veteran's separation from service; and (2) the Veteran's reported history of asbestos exposure (see May 2011 private chest X-ray ); he states that he was exposed to asbestos in service because he had to "tear it off the boilers to weld the boilers" (see October 2015 substantive appeal). The Veteran was provided a VA examination in December 2019. The VA examiner's nexus opinion did not address the evidence specifically identified in the remand directives. Thus, there has not been substantial compliance with the Board's previous remand directives. As a result, another remand is required to obtain an addendum opinion. Stegall v. West, 11 Vet. App. 268, 271 (1998). In addition, on appeal, the Veteran should be provided another opportunity to provide VA authorization to obtain the private treatment records identified in the May 2019 remand. The Veteran did not respond to previous attempts to obtain authorization via letters sent to him in October 2019 and December 2019. The matters are REMANDED for the following action: 1. Ask the Veteran to complete a VA Form 21-4142 for private treatment records from Dr. H. and Cullman Internal Medicine since February 2014. Make two requests for the authorized records unless it is clear after the first request that a second request would be futile. 2. Obtain an addendum opinion from an appropriate clinician regarding the Veteran's currently diagnosed lung disability. The examiner must review the claims file. Following review of the claims file, the examiner is asked to provide a response to the following: Is any current lung disability at least as likely as not related to service, including his duties as an arc welder and in-service exposure to hazardous smoke (including from welding rods) or sandblasting materials? In providing the requested opinion and rationale, the examiner must expressly discuss the significance, if any, of the facts set forth below in sections A) and B): A) The Veteran's complaints of shortness of breath/chest pain as noted in his STRs prior to his separation from service, to include: a March 1973 STR noting the use of an arc weld as potential exposure to any toxic chemical or physical agents in which he frequently came into contact, and also noting that the Veteran experienced "[p]ain or burning in [c]hest"; a November 1973 STR in which the Veteran complained of central chest pain; and STRs from September 1973, specifically his separation examination report and his Report of Medical History (in which the Veteran checked boxes "don't know" for shortness of breath and "yes" for having had pain or pressure in his chest), both of which note the following complaints: Experiences SOB with exercise. NCNS. Experiences recurrent chest pain approximately 1-2 month. Sought treatment on several occasions, told he had muscle spasms. Presently asymptomatic. NCNS. B) The Veteran's reported history of exposure to smoke fumes from arc welding and sandblasting, as well as asbestos exposure, to include: a May 2011 private treatment record (submitted March 2014) of a chest X-ray noting shortness of breath and a history of asbestos exposure and the October 2015 substantive appeal in which the Veteran reported being exposed to hazardous smoke from welding and exposure to sandblasting hazardous materials, as well as tearing off asbestos from boilers in order to do welding, all without adequate safety precautions. C) Finally, in providing the requested opinion and rationale, the examiner should also consider the Military Medicine article entitled, "The Impact of Deployment on COPD in Active Duty Military Personnel," which discusses the possible connection between inhaled smoke and respiratory disorders in military members who served in Southwest Asia, which the Veteran provided a link to in the March 2019 appellate brief. D. JOHNSON Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans' Appeals Attorney for the Board R. Caban, 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.