The Board has determined that the Veteran's death was caused by hepatitis C, which occurred during his service as a medic. The cause of this condition is considered to be directly related to his active duty.
The deciding factor: The VA physician could not provide an opinion without resorting to speculation regarding the source of the fatal hepatitis C, but determined that it was at least as likely as not due to exposures while serving as a combat medic in service.
- Claimed conditions
- Hepatic failure due to hepatitis C, HIV infection
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- August 6, 2010
- Citation
- 1029647
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 1029647.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for various conditions, including HIV infection, bilateral hearing loss, traumatic brain injury (TBI), sight impairment, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) with unspecified depressive disorder.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claim for compensation under 38 U.S.C. § 1151 for HIV infection by VAMC was denied, and the Board found that there is no evidence to support a finding of fault on VA's part in causing his HIV infection. The issue of service connection for residuals of HIV infection has been remanded due to duty-to-assist errors.
- Dismissed
The Veteran withdrew his appeal for service connection for HIV with peripheral neuropathy, and the Board dismissed this issue as a result.
- Granted
The Veteran's PTSD is granted as service-connected, and the HIV infection case is remanded for further review.
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