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Denied

The Board denied the veteran's claims for an increased initial disability rating and a total rating for compensation based on individual unemployability due to his service-connected calcified pleural plaques. The veteran was rated at 10 percent disabling for this condition, but the appeal is now closed as he does not meet the criteria for higher ratings or a total rating.

The deciding factor: The veteran's calcified pleural plaques did not warrant an increased disability rating beyond 10 percent and his service-connected disability did not preclude him from obtaining or retaining substantially gainful employment.

Claimed conditions
calcified pleural plaques due to asbestos exposure
How they argued it
Direct service connection
Exposure basis
None
Rating assigned
10%
Decision date
February 27, 2004
Citation
0405531

Veterans Law Judge

STEVEN L. COHN

Decisions by this judge: 396 · 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 0405531.

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

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