The Board denied the appellant's claims of service connection for the cause of the veteran's death and entitlement to DIC benefits under 38 U.S.C.A. § 1318, finding that there was no evidence linking the veteran's death to his military service or a service-connected disability.
The deciding factor: The Board determined that there was insufficient medical evidence to establish a causal relationship between the veteran's service and his cause of death (bilateral bronchopneumonia) or any service-connected condition. The appellant did not meet the criteria for DIC benefits under 38 U.S.C.A. § 1318 as she could not demonstrate that her spouse was entitled to a combined 100% schedular rating for at least 10 years prior to his death.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral bronchopneumonia, congestive heart failure
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- July 24, 2006
- Citation
- 0621832
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 103 · Granted: 13% (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 0621832.
What this means for you
A final Board denial may be appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, generally within 120 days of the Board mailing date. A Supplemental Claim with new and relevant evidence is a separate option. Another Higher-Level Review of the Board decision is not available. Check your own notice: this historical decision does not set your deadline.
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: Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's eligibility for PCAFC benefits is remanded due to the AOJ's failure to address whether it is in the best interest of the Veteran to participate in the program. The Board finds that the Veteran has been in need of personal care services for at least six continuous months based on an inability to perform the ADL of bathing.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board has determined that the Veteran's death was not caused by or substantially contributed to by any service-connected disability, and thus denied the claim for service connection for cause of death.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
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- Whole decision: Denied
The Board denied service connection for various conditions, including psychiatric disorders, chronic fatigue, congestive heart failure, DM II, hypertension, and a right shoulder condition. The Veteran's claims were based on presumed exposure to contaminated water at Camp Lejeune.
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