Citation Nr: 22017250 Decision Date: 03/24/22 Archive Date: 03/24/22 DOCKET NO. 17-03 065 DATE: March 24, 2022 REMANDED Entitlement to service connection for asthma is remanded. REASONS FOR REMAND The Veteran served on active duty from November 1972 to November 1974. Evidence affiliated with the claims file also indicates that the Veteran served in the Reserve from November 1974 to November 1978. This matter comes before the Board of Veterans' Appeals (Board) on appeal from a September 2014 rating decision issued by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO) in St. Louis, Missouri. 1. Asthma As noted above, there is evidence in the claims file indicating that the Veteran was transferred to the Reserve when he was discharged from active military duty in November 1974 and served in the Reserve until discharge in November 1978. See November 1974 DD Form 214; October 1978 Department of the Army Office of the Adjutant General Reserve Components Personnel and Administrator Center Orders (received in February 2014). Although there are service treatment records and service personnel records associated with the claims file revealing the Veteran's education, performance, assignments, points, and awards, the precise dates of all periods of active duty for training (ACDUTRA) and inactive duty for training (INACDUTRA) are not available. On remand, the RO should confirm the Veteran's periods of ACDUTRA and INACDUTRA. As the Board is requesting these dates be verified, the Board also acknowledges the possibility and probability that the Veteran's treatment records during his Reserve service could reflect manifestations of symptomatology related to the Veteran's asthma. Thus, the Board also requests that the Veteran's service treatment records throughout his Reserve service be obtained in addition to an opinion as to whether the Veteran's asthma is causally related to his Reserve service. The Board acknowledges receipt of an August 2014 opinion regarding the nature and cause of the Veteran's asthma. The examiner providing the August 2014 opinion concluded that his asthma was more likely than not due to "the normal process of aging." However, the examiner did not provide a rationale explaining this conclusion. Nieves-Rodriguez v. Peake, 22 Vet. App. 295, 301 (2008). Therefore, this opinion is inadequate. On remand, the Board requests an addendum opinion determining the nature and etiology of the Veteran's asthma. The matters are REMANDED for the following action: 1. The RO should determine the specific dates of when the Veteran served on ACDUTRA and/or INACDUTRA. In this regard a report detailing the Veteran's award of Reserve retirement points will NOT represent compliance with this instruction. Rather, each and every date of active duty service, ACDUTRA, and INACDUTRA, must be verified. Then, issue a memorandum for inclusion in the claims file detailing each period of verified active military service, whether on active duty, ACDUTRA, or INACDUTRA. All outstanding medical treatment records associated with the Veteran's Reserve service should also be obtained. 2. Then, forward the claims file to an appropriate clinician who has not previously provided an opinion in this case to determine the nature and etiology of the Veteran's asthma. If the clinician decides that a new examination (or telehealth interview, etc., if an in-person examination is not feasible) would be beneficial, one is to be provided. The clinician should opine as to whether it is at least as likely as not (probability of about 50 percent) that the Veteran's asthma manifested during, or is the result of, his active duty service and/or ACDUTRA, to include as due to exposure to chemicals at Edgewood Arsenal. In formulating his or her opinion(s) the clinician must consider and address the competent medical and lay evidence of record, including, but not limited to: (i) The Veteran's service treatment records; (ii) The Veteran's service personnel records indicating his exposure to chemicals at Edgewood Arsenal in 1973; (iii) The Veteran's post-service VA and private medical records; (iv) The July 2006 Deployment Health Support Directorate Fact Sheet and Frequently Asked Questions (received in March 2014); (v) Correspondence received in June 2014 indicating the chemicals to which the Veteran was exposed in service; (vi) Chemistry: EA-3148 received from the Veteran in correspondence received in February 2021 and July 2021 (labeled C&P Exam and Medical Treatment Record Non-Government Facility, respectively); and (vii) The Veteran's competent lay statements regarding his first-hand in-service experiences and the onset and continuity of his symptomatology. If the clinician determines that the Veteran's asthma is less likely than not due to his active duty service and/or his ACDUTRA, the clinician should discuss what other factor(s) caused the disorder. In other words, the clinician should ascertain the most likely etiology of the Veteran's asthma. A complete rationale must be provided for all opinions and conclusions reached. 3. Then, the RO should readjudicate the issue of entitlement to service connection for asthma. If the above-sought benefit remains denied, the RO should issue a Supplemental Statement of the Case (SSOC) to the Veteran and his representative. An appropriate period of time should be allowed for response before returning this appeal to the Board. Zi-Heng Zhu Acting Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans' Appeals Attorney for the Board S. Hoffman 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.