The Board denied the veteran's claims for an initial disability evaluation in excess of 30 percent for lung disease manifested by pleural plaques and for an effective date prior to December 5, 1995, for service connection. The veteran was assigned a 30 percent rating since December 5, 1995.
The deciding factor: The evidence did not support earlier effective dates or higher initial disability evaluations based on the criteria provided in the VA's Schedule for Rating Disabilities.
- Claimed conditions
- Pleural plaques
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 30%
- Decision date
- December 21, 2000
- Citation
- 0033353
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 0033353.
What this means for you
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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 granted service connection for respiratory disability, diagnosed as interstitial lung disease, hypersensitivity pneumonitis, pulmonary fibrosis, and pleural plaques associated with asbestos exposure. The decision is based on the Veteran's reported symptoms during service and post-service, along with VA examination reports.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's interstitial lung disease with pleural plaques has been rated at a 10 percent disability rating since December 4, 2015. The Board found that the Veteran is entitled to this rating for the entire appeal period. However, his OSA remains on remand as additional development is needed.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's lung disability, including COPD, asbestosis and pleural plaques, is being remanded for a VA examination to determine if it is related to service or asbestos exposure.
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