The Board denied service connection for COPD with bullous emphysema due to tobacco abuse, and the claim was not reopened as new and material evidence was not submitted.
The deciding factor: The veteran's COPD/emphysema is not related to his military service or service-connected PTSD. The examiner concluded that smoking was a personal choice unrelated to his military service or PTSD.
- Claimed conditions
- COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease), bullous emphysema
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 14, 2007
- Citation
- 0714274
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 0714274.
What this means for you
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Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Veteran's claim for a rating in excess of 60 percent for bullous emphysema was denied as the evidence did not meet the criteria for such a higher rating.,The Veteran's claim for a rating in excess of 30 percent for bilateral posterior synechia; bilateral dry eye syndrome; left eye band keratopathy; and bilateral pseudophakia (previously rated as uveitis) was denied due to lack of incapacitating episodes during the past year.,The Veteran's claim for a compensable rating for hearing loss was denied because his best corrected visual acuity did not meet the criteria for any higher rating.,The Veteran's claim for service connection for erectile dysfunction (ED) was denied as there was no evidence linking ED to his military service.
- Denied
The Board denied the appeal because the Appellant did not file a timely substantive appeal after receiving the SOC, and there was no evidence of circumstances warranting equitable tolling.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for squamous cell cancer and denied the claims for an earlier effective date, service connection for implanted cardiac pacemaker, and several other conditions.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for an increased disability rating in excess of 10 percent for his service-connected bilateral pleural scar with obstructive and restrictive pulmonary disease, COPD and chronic bronchitis.
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