The Board found no evidence linking the veteran's service-connected disabilities to his cause of death, ALS. Therefore, the claim for service connection for cause of death was denied. The appellant is also not entitled to special monthly compensation by reason of need for regular aid and attendance or being housebound as her husband died without meeting the criteria.
The deciding factor: The Board determined that there was no medical evidence linking the veteran's service-connected disabilities to his fatal ALS, which precluded granting service connection for cause of death. Additionally, the appellant did not meet the requirements for special monthly compensation by reason of need for regular aid and attendance or being housebound.
- Claimed conditions
- ALS
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 20, 2003
- Citation
- 0305217
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,642 · Granted: 19% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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 0305217.
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Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Veteran's cause of death was determined to be motor neuron disease with respiratory failure. The Board found that the Veteran had an ALS diagnosis and granted service connection for his cause of death, as it resulted from a motor neuron disorder.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for the Servicemember's cause of death, including ALS, myasthenia gravis, and metastatic prostate cancer, as they were not incurred during or related to his military service.
- Granted
The Veteran's cause of death was determined to be motor neuron disease with respiratory failure. The Board found that the Veteran had an ALS diagnosis and granted service connection for his cause of death, as it resulted from a motor neuron disorder.
- Granted
The Veteran's cause of death was determined to be motor neuron disease with respiratory failure. The Board found that the Veteran had an ALS diagnosis and granted service connection for his cause of death, as it resulted from a motor neuron disorder.
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