The Board found no evidence linking the cause of the veteran's death to his active military service or any service-connected condition, including exposure to Agent Orange. The claim was denied as not well grounded.
The deciding factor: There is insufficient medical evidence to establish a link between the veteran's death and his in-service tobacco use or exposure to Agent Orange.
- Claimed conditions
- Interstitial fibrosis, Viral pneumonia
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- August 14, 2000
- Citation
- 0021324
This is a plain-language summary generated by AI from a public Board of Veterans’ Appeals decision. It can contain errors — always verify against the original. Look up the original decision on VA.gov (opens in a new tab) using citation 0021324.
What this means for you
A denial is a starting point, not the end of the road. You can see why this claim fell short — and, if you are still inside the one-year window, the appeal lanes that may remain open to you.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Board denied a higher initial disability rating for the service-connected respiratory disability, finding that the Veteran's FVC was only 65% of predicted value, which does not meet the criteria for any compensable rating under the applicable VA Rating Schedule.
- Granted
The Board has determined that the Veteran's interstitial fibrosis is etiologically related to his active-duty service, specifically due to his conceded exposure to Agent Orange. As such, the claim for service connection is granted.
- Denied
The Veteran's interstitial fibrosis was rated at 10 percent, and the Board found that the evidence did not warrant a higher rating.
- Denied
The Veteran's service-connected interstitial fibrosis is currently rated as noncompensable, and the Board finds that a higher rating is not warranted based on the objective evidence of record.
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