The Board found no evidence linking the veteran's death to his military service, and thus denied the claim for service connection for the cause of the veteran's death.
The deciding factor: There is no medical evidence or opinion linking the veteran's hepatic failure due to alcoholic liver disease that caused his death to his military service.
- Claimed conditions
- Alcoholic liver disease, Hepatic failure
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- July 18, 2008
- Citation
- 0824013
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 0824013.
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
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has determined that there are duty to assist errors in the current decision and remands the case for further development, including obtaining an ILER and a medical opinion regarding the etiology of the Veteran's cause of death.
- Granted
The Board has determined that the Veteran's death was caused by alcoholic liver disease, which developed due to his long-standing alcohol use and psychiatric disability. The Board found that service-connected disability contributed to the cause of death.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient development of medical records and need for an addendum opinion regarding the Veteran's acquired psychiatric disorder. The claim will be further developed to determine if any service-connected disability contributed to the cause of death.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient evidence regarding whether the Veteran had PTSD related to combat in Vietnam, which is necessary for service connection of his cause of death.
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