The Veteran's claim for service connection for pulmonary emphysema is granted due to the submission of new evidence that supports a finding of asbestos exposure during service, leading to the conclusion that his current condition is at least as likely as not related to this exposure.
The deciding factor: The Board found the submitted evidence in equipoise with the claim and concluded that the Veteran's pulmonary emphysema was at least as likely as not caused by asbestos exposure during service.
- Claimed conditions
- pulmonary emphysema
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 18, 2019
- Citation
- A19003696
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 3,319 · Granted: 25% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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 A19003696.
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.
- Granted
The Veteran's claim for service connection for pulmonary emphysema is granted. The Board also remanded the claims for left and right shoulder disabilities.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for chronic sinusitis and remanded the claims for COPD, pulmonary emphysema, GERD, hypertension, and hypertensive CKD due to inadequate VA examinations.
- Partly granted
The Board granted the Veteran's applications to reopen claims for service connection for mononucleosis, pulmonary emphysema, and severe tooth loss. The claim for TDIU was denied as moot due to a combined 100% rating.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for pulmonary emphysema, gastroparesis, and granulomatous hepatitis due to a lack of evidence linking these conditions to the Veteran's military service or toxic exposure. The claim for left ventricular systolic dysfunction was remanded.
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