The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for cause of death and Dependency and Indemnity Compensation under 38 USC § 1318. The cause of death was atherosclerotic coronary artery disease, which the Board found not related to any period of active duty or National Guard service.
The deciding factor: The evidence did not establish that the veteran's atherosclerotic coronary artery disease was incurred in or aggravated by his military service, and therefore could not be considered service-connected. The Board also determined that the veteran was not rated as totally disabled due to service-connected conditions for at least 10 years immediately preceding death.
- Claimed conditions
- Atherosclerotic coronary artery disease
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- February 11, 2019
- Citation
- 19110662
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,011 · 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 19110662.
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Related decisions
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The Veteran's death was caused by cardiopulmonary arrest due to heart disorders, with significant contributing causes including diabetes and angioplasty. The Board found that the Veteran's PTSD contributed substantially to his heart conditions, leading to a grant of service connection for the cause of death.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the case due to insufficient evidence regarding the Veteran's exposure to Agent Orange in Da Nang, Vietnam. The VA will need to verify this information and then obtain a medical opinion on whether it is at least as likely as not that the exposure could have resulted in the cause of death.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claim for service connection for ischemic heart disease is remanded due to the need for additional medical records, particularly from non-VA facilities.
- Granted
The Board has determined that the Veteran's cause of death, ischemic heart disease, is presumed to be related to service due to exposure to herbicide agents (including Agent Orange) during his active duty. As a result, the claim for service connection for the cause of the Veteran’s death is granted.
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