The Board has determined that an earlier effective date for the grant of service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death is not warranted and dismisses the appeal.
The deciding factor: The claim was denied due to a lack of statutory authority to award benefits prior to the effective date of the liberalizing regulation, which allowed for the grant of service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death on October 7, 2004. The appellant filed her most recent application to reopen more than one year after this effective date.
- Claimed conditions
- cardiomyopathy, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
- How they argued it
- Presumptive (no nexus needed)
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 14, 2011
- Citation
- 1138410
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 1138410.
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.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for a heart disability, finding that it is secondary to the Veteran's service-connected PTSD.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for the Veteran's heart condition, finding that it is secondary to his service-connected PTSD.
- Denied
The Board denied the claim for TDIU prior to October 18, 2018 due to a lack of evidence showing that the Veteran's service-connected disabilities prevented him from securing or following a substantially gainful occupation.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection for cardiomyopathy and hypertension due to a pre-decisional duty to assist error in the April 2025 rating decision. The issues are being remanded for further development, including obtaining an addendum opinion from an appropriate clinician.
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