The Board found that the Veteran's cause of death, respiratory failure due to COPD exacerbation and black lung, was not related to his military service.
The deciding factor: There is no evidence linking the Veteran’s respiratory condition to his military service.
- Claimed conditions
- respiratory failure, chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder (COPD), black lung
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 4, 2009
- Citation
- 0946267
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 0946267.
What this means for you
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What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Veteran's causes of death were not found to be service-connected, as there was no credible evidence linking the conditions to his military service.
- Granted
The Veteran's cause of death, including hypertension and diabetes mellitus type II, are presumed to be related to his service in the Republic of Vietnam. The Board has granted service connection for these conditions.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claims for higher ratings for tinnitus, liver disorder (MASLD), and COPD are remanded due to incomplete or inadequate evidence. The claim for service connection is also remanded.
- Granted
The Veteran's cause of death was respiratory failure caused by hepatic failure, hepatocellular cancer, and chronic hepatitis C infection.,Service connection for the cause of death is granted as his alcohol and substance abuse were secondary to his service-connected PTSD.
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