The Veteran's substance abuse disorder, including alcohol and cocaine abuse, is not found to be proximately due to or the result of his service-connected depression. The Veteran has been diagnosed with hepatitis C, but it is not related to his in-service use of intravenous drugs and/or intranasal cocaine.
The deciding factor: The VA addendum medical opinions concluded that the substance abuse disorder was not caused by the service-connected depression and that the hepatitis C is not related to the Veteran's in-service drug use.
- Claimed conditions
- substance abuse disorder, alcohol and cocaine abuse, hepatitis C
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- February 21, 2017
- Citation
- 1705136
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 1705136.
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: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has expanded the scope of the claim for major depression to encompass any mental health disability raised by the record and has remanded six issues for additional development.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Veteran's claim for service connection of substance abuse disorder is denied as the evidence does not support a finding that his condition was caused by or related to active service.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claims for COPD, PTSD, hepatitis C, TDIU, and temporary total disability evaluation due to a failure to address his timely request for higher-level review of the July 2018 rating decision.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the claims for diabetes, gum disease, hypertension, orthopedic foot disorder, left shoulder disorder, right shoulder disorder, hepatitis C, skin disorder of the feet (claimed as trench foot), and an acquired psychiatric disorder (claimed as depression and anxiety) due to errors in duty to assist.
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