The Board denied service connection for a heart disability and diabetes mellitus, type II due to lack of evidence showing exposure to herbicide agents during service. The Veteran's military records show he served at Osan Air Base in South Korea and Eglin Air Force Base in Florida, but the aircraft used there were not known to have been contaminated with herbicides until after his service.
The deciding factor: The Board found no evidence of exposure to herbicide agents during service and thus could not grant presumptive service connection for the disabilities.
- Claimed conditions
- heart disability, diabetes mellitus, type II
- How they argued it
- Presumptive (no nexus needed)
- Exposure basis
- Gulf War
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 22, 2019
- Citation
- A19002107
What this means for you
A denial is a starting point, not the end of the road. You can see why this claim fell short — and, if you are still inside the one-year window, the appeal lanes that may remain open to you.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection for hypertension and diabetes mellitus to obtain further medical opinions regarding their potential relationship to toxic exposures during active service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection for right foot, left elbow, left hip, left ankle, and diabetes mellitus to obtain additional medical evidence.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for a heart disability as the evidence did not support that it began during active service or was related to an in-service injury.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for an initial rating higher than 30 percent for the service-connected heart disability to correct an error by the AOJ in not informing the Veteran of his right to a pre-decisional hearing.
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