The Veteran's claim of service connection for a lung disorder, including calcified right pleural plaque, left pleural effusion, mild subcarinal adenopathy with nodes, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and pulmonary asbestosis is granted. The issue of whether the Veteran was exposed to asbestos aboard USS Vulcan AR-5 during his service is remanded.
The deciding factor: The VA medical opinion raises a reasonable possibility of substantiating the claim of service connection when considered with the previous evidence of record.
- Claimed conditions
- lung disorder, calcified right pleural plaque, left pleural effusion, mild subcarinal adenopathy with nodes, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), pulmonary asbestosis
- How they argued it
- Reopened with new and material evidence
- Exposure basis
- Burn pits / airborne hazards
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 29, 2019
- Citation
- 19106453
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,242 · Granted: 24% (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 19106453.
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
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