The Veteran's death was attributed to pulmonary embolism and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. The VA examiner concluded that the cause of death is not related to service-connected conditions or Agent Orange exposure, but a new medical opinion is needed based on an accurate understanding of the Veteran's employment history.
The deciding factor: A new medical opinion is required due to conflicting evidence regarding the cause of death and the role of service-connected conditions and Agent Orange exposure.
- Claimed conditions
- Pulmonary Embolism, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- Agent Orange / herbicides
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 18, 2016
- Citation
- 1620234
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 1620234.
What this means for you
A remand is not a loss. The Board sent the case back for more development — often a new exam or missing records — before making a final decision. Many remands later end in a grant, and the decision spells out exactly what the Board wanted to see.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for the grant of service connection for Persistent Depressive Disorder is denied. The Board has also remanded the issue of service connection for Pulmonary Embolism due to predecisional duty to assist errors.
- Denied
The Veteran's death was not caused or contributed to by service or a service-connected disability. The Board denied the claim for service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death as there was no evidence of herbicide exposure during service and no other link between the Veteran's death and his military service.
- Granted
The Board has granted the Veteran's claim for service connection for residuals of pulmonary embolism, finding that it is secondary to her service-connected PCOS.
- Granted
The Board has determined that the Veteran's pulmonary embolism is secondary to his service-connected heart disability and grants service connection for this condition.
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