The veteran's claim for service connection for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease due to smoking tobacco during service was denied as a matter of law because the claim was filed after June 9, 1998.
The deciding factor: The VCAA (Veterans Claims Assistance Act) does not require evidentiary development when the law is controlling and the veteran's claim must be denied as a matter of law due to the statutory prohibition on service connection for claims filed after June 9, 1998.
- Claimed conditions
- Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 23, 2003
- Citation
- 0309888
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 0309888.
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 the claim for service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death, as none of the listed causes were related to his period of active duty or presumed exposure to herbicides.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for multiple disabilities, including thoracolumbar spine disability, bilateral knee and hip disabilities, heart disease, erectile dysfunction, COPD, and denied an initial rating higher than 50 percent for MDD with GAD.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for posttraumatic stress disorder and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, finding no current disability and insufficient evidence of an in-service event or exposure.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for diabetes mellitus type 2, a heart condition as secondary to hypertension, and lower extremity vascular disability as secondary to diabetes mellitus type 2. The claims for peripheral neuropathy in all four extremities and amputation of toes were also granted as secondary to diabetes mellitus type 2. However, the claims for a neck condition, COPD, gall bladder removal, and chronic kidney disease were denied.
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