The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for hepatitis C infection, finding that it is less likely related to military service and more likely related to illicit drug use.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner determined that the Veteran's risk factors for infection include in-service blood exposure, shared use of personal hygiene items such as toothbrushes and shaving razors, and illicit drug use. It was concluded that his hepatitis C is less likely than not related to military service and more likely related to his use of illicit drugs.
- Claimed conditions
- hepatitis C infection
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- February 25, 2009
- Citation
- 0906901
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,316 · Granted: 43% (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 0906901.
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.
- Denied
The Veteran's cause of death, hepatocellular carcinoma and hepatitis C infection, is not service connected as there was no evidence linking these conditions to his military service.
- Denied
The Board found that the Veteran's hepatitis C infection is not related to his active military service and denied his claim.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for hepatitis C infection, finding that the Veteran's combat experiences with wounded and dead soldiers in Vietnam is a significant risk factor.
- Granted
The Board has determined that new and material evidence has been submitted to reopen the Veteran's claim of service connection for hepatitis C infection. The reopened claim will now be reviewed on its merits.
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