The Board has reopened the claim for service connection for the cause of the Veteran’s death due to new and material evidence. The Board finds that there is an equal balance of positive and negative evidence linking the Veteran's cause of death to his in-service injury, thus granting the claim.
The deciding factor: The medical opinions are in equipoise regarding whether the Veteran's in-service left leg injury contributed to his cause of death (pulmonary embolism and cellulitis).
- Claimed conditions
- Pulmonary Embolism, Cellulitis or Contusion of the Left Leg
- How they argued it
- Reopened with new and material evidence
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 5, 2019
- Citation
- 19126080
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided that there is insufficient evidence to determine if the Veteran's death was caused by service-connected conditions, and thus remanded for further development. The case will be reviewed again with a focus on verifying any potential exposure to herbicides in service and obtaining medical opinions regarding the cause of the Veteran's pulmonary embolism.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the case due to insufficient medical opinions regarding the etiology of the Veteran's pulmonary embolism and whether it is related to service-connected prostate cancer.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's death was due to a pulmonary embolism. The appellant seeks service connection for this condition based on exposure to herbicides, specifically Agent Orange. The Board has ordered additional development including obtaining the Veteran’s military personnel records and verifying his exposure to herbicide agents. A VA medical opinion is needed to determine if there is a relationship between the Veteran's death and his in-service exposure to herbicides.
- Denied
The Veteran's death was not service-connected for burial purposes due to the absence of a service-connected disability at the time of his death. The claim for accrued benefits was also denied as there were no pending claims or unpaid benefits at the time of his death.
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