The Board has determined that the veteran's service-connected schizophrenia contributed to his alcoholism, which in turn contributed to his death from recurrent pneumonia due to aspiration. The Board finds that this combination of factors meets the criteria for service connection for the cause of death.
The deciding factor: The VA medical opinions provided a nexus between the veteran's service-connected schizophrenia and the worsening of his alcoholism, which was a contributory cause of his death.
- Claimed conditions
- recurrent pneumonia, squamous cell carcinoma of the tongue, ethanol abuse, encephalopathy, history of cerebral vascular accident
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- June 9, 2003
- Citation
- 0311871
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,177 · Granted: 24% (granted or partly granted, in the indexed 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. Search VA.gov for the original decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 0311871.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board allowed the benefit or issue identified in this decision. Review the original order: other issues in the same appeal may have a different outcome, and this decision does not predict another claim.
What you can do next
Use your own notice and decision stage. A remanded issue is not a final court-appealable denial. VA review guidance and CAVC filing instructions (U.S. federal; reviewed October 7, 2026).
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board has denied the claims for service connection for encephalopathy and female sexual arousal disorder (FSAD) as there is no persuasive evidence of current diagnoses or a link to service.
- Whole decision: Dismissed
The Veteran's appeals for various service connection claims have been dismissed due to his death while the appeal was pending.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Board has granted service connection for squamous cell carcinoma of the tongue, finding that it is related to active duty service due to exposure to Agent Orange.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board found no evidence linking the Veteran's causes of death to service or a service-connected disability, and thus denied the claim for service connection.
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