The Board denied service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death, finding that there was no evidence to support a diagnosis of ALS during his lifetime and that it did not contribute to his death. The Veteran died from respiratory disease and neuromuscular disease.
The deciding factor: The VA examiners found no evidence of ALS in the medical records or autopsy report, and concluded that ALS did not cause or contribute to the Veteran's death.
- Claimed conditions
- Respiratory disease, Neuromuscular disease not otherwise specified, ALS
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 1, 2019
- Citation
- 19115203
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 19115203.
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 Veteran's claims for separate compensable initial evaluations and an increased evaluation for ALS, as well as the issue of whether the severance of service connection for myelopathy was proper.
- Denied
The Veteran's claims for specially adapted housing and special home adaptation grant were denied as he does not meet the eligibility criteria due to his service-connected disabilities.
- Denied
The Board denied the claim for accrued benefits as there is no convincing proof that a claim was filed, and if it had been, the Veteran and appellant would have had until shortly after his death to file a request under the 'Special Claims Handling Procedures for Missing Documents'.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claim for service connection for ALS as he did not have active military, naval or air service and was not disabled from a disease or injury incurred in line of duty during his period of ACDUTRA.
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