The Board has determined that the Veteran's death was caused by his service-connected COPD, which is presumed to have been caused by herbicide exposure in Vietnam. As such, the cause of the Veteran's death is now considered service connected.
The deciding factor: The evidence is at least in equipoise as to whether the Veteran's conceded exposure to Agent Orange in service caused his COPD, and COPD was found to be the immediate or underlying cause of his death.
- Claimed conditions
- Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)
- How they argued it
- Presumptive (no nexus needed)
- Exposure basis
- Agent Orange / herbicides
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- August 30, 2017
- Citation
- 1735980
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 1735980.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the claim of service connection for COPD due to duty-to-assist errors and a need for a supplemental medical opinion.
- Denied
The Veteran's appeal to reduce the ratings for OSA and COPD with asthma and granuloma of the lung was denied, as well as his attempt to add a claim for service connection for aphasia secondary to TBI. The appeals were dismissed due to untimeliness.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claim for service connection for COPD is remanded due to a duty to assist error. The Board requests an addendum opinion from a pulmonologist or clinician with appropriate expertise to determine if the Veteran's COPD is etiologically related to his VA conceded TERA exposure, including exposure to TCDD, jet fuel and engine exhaust, hazardous chemicals, lead, vehicle engine exhaust fumes, chemical vapors, oily/hazardous waste, chemical solvents, and compressed gases.
- Denied
The Veteran's COPD was evaluated and found not to meet the criteria for a compensable disability rating based on the provided pulmonary function test results. The Board denied the claim as there is no evidence of service connection or exposure basis that would warrant a higher rating.
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