The Board denied the appellant's claims for service connection for the cause of the veteran's death and DIC under 38 U.S.C.A. § 1318 due to lack of entitlement under the law.
The deciding factor: The claim was denied based on a lack of entitlement under the law, specifically because the Internal Revenue Service Restructuring and Reform Act of 1998 prohibited service connection for death or disability resulting from an injury or disability due to inservice use of tobacco products by a veteran. The veteran's death was also not determined to be service-connected.
- Claimed conditions
- gastric carcinoma
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- February 8, 2001
- Citation
- 0103876
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 0103876.
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.
- Granted
The Veteran's death was caused by gastric carcinoma, which the Board found to be related to his exposure to herbicide agents in service. As a result, DIC benefits are granted.
- Granted
The Board has granted the appellant's claim to reopen service connection for cause of death, finding that the Veteran's gastric carcinoma (stomach cancer) is a result of his in-service exposure to Agent Orange. As this condition is considered a service-connected disability, it was determined as the immediate cause of the Veteran's death.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's cause of death is remanded for a VA opinion to determine the cause(s) and whether it is at least as likely as not that the Veteran's gastric carcinoma, and/or any other determined cause of death, is directly related to service, including herbicide exposure. The DIC claim is also remanded due to its inextricability with the cause of death claim.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for the cause of his death due to lack of evidence linking any service-connected disability or exposure to contaminants, radiation, asbestos, or contaminated drinking water to his gastric carcinoma.
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