The Board found that the Veteran's cause of death was not caused by or related to his active duty service, including exposure to herbicides. Therefore, service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death is denied.
The deciding factor: There was no evidence linking the Veteran's cause of death (heart attack) to his active duty service, including exposure to herbicides.
- Claimed conditions
- Heart attack
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- January 14, 2014
- Citation
- 1401892
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. Read the original VA decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 1401892.
What this means for you
A final Board denial may be appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, generally within 120 days of the Board mailing date. A Supplemental Claim with new and relevant evidence is a separate option. Another Higher-Level Review of the Board decision is not available. Check your own notice: this historical decision does not set your deadline.
What you can do next
Use your own notice and decision stage. A remanded issue is not a final court-appealable denial. VA review guidance and CAVC filing instructions (U.S. federal; reviewed October 7, 2026).
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Veteran's claim for payment or reimbursement of ambulance transportation costs incurred on January 9, 2021, was granted. The ambulance transport was deemed necessary due to the Veteran experiencing symptoms consistent with a heart attack and required immediate medical attention.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claim for payment or reimbursement of medical expenses incurred from February 24 to February 26, 2020, at Santa Clara Valley Medical Center (SCVMC) is being remanded due to unclear decision notices and lack of documentation regarding any specific errors in the claim.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Veteran's emergency treatment for a heart attack was approved as reasonable and necessary, with no service-connected condition involved.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Veteran's unauthorized, non-VA medical expenses for a heart attack from November 29 to November 30, 2018 are granted as the care was emergent and VA facilities were not feasibly available.
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