The Board found no evidence to support a connection between the Veteran's hepatitis C and VA treatment in the 1980s, February 1993, or July 2003. The preponderance of evidence is against finding that the Veteran's hepatitis C was caused by VA care.
The deciding factor: The August 2013 VA examination found no evidence indicating the Veteran received blood or blood products at VA during these procedures and noted a negative test result for hepatitis C in March 1993, which would have been within two months of the procedure. The examiner concluded that based on the scientific understanding of hepatitis C transmission, the earliest likelihood of exposure was approximately two months prior to March 9, 1993.
- Claimed conditions
- Hepatitis C
- How they argued it
- Reopened with new and material evidence
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 16, 2017
- Citation
- 1708096
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 1708096.
What this means for you
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Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Board denied a compensable initial rating for Hepatitis C, finding that the Veteran's condition was asymptomatic and did not meet the criteria for any higher rating.
- Granted
The Board has determined that the Veteran's Hepatitis C with cirrhosis is related to service, and therefore grants service connection for these conditions.
- Partly granted
The Veteran's depressive disorder is granted as service-connected, with the Board finding it related to his active duty service and aggravated by his service-connected tibia fractures. The claim for hepatitis C is remanded due to inadequate medical opinions regarding its etiology.,Service connection for depressive disorder is established based on direct evidence of a current disability (depressive disorder) that was incurred during active duty service.
- Granted
The Veteran's service-connected Hepatitis C, lumbar DDD with strain, osteomyelitis, and loss of use of right foot disability rendered him so helpless as to be in need of regular aid and attendance. Effective October 28, 2008, the Veteran meets the criteria for SMC under various provisions.
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