The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for nicotine dependence and Buerger's disease, finding that the provisions of 38 U.S.C.A. § 1103 prohibit such awards due to the prohibition on compensation for disabilities resulting from tobacco use in service.
The deciding factor: Congress has prohibited VA from awarding service connection for injuries or diseases attributable to the veteran's use of tobacco products during service, including nicotine dependence and Buerger's disease.
- Claimed conditions
- Nicotine Dependence, Buerger's Disease
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 19, 2003
- Citation
- 0332150
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 0332150.
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.
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- Granted
From June 3, 2016, the Veteran's PTSD symptoms are best described as manifesting by total occupational and social impairment. His PTSD is rated at a maximum of 100 percent.
- Denied
The Board denied reopening of the claims for service connection for various conditions, including nicotine dependence, coronary artery disease, neuropathy of the legs, loss of vision in the left eye, cataracts, atrial fibrillation, obesity, cerebrovascular accident, diabetes mellitus, porokeratosis, hypertension, and hyperlipidemia. The Board found that new evidence did not establish a relationship to service.
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