The Veteran's service-connected interstitial fibrosis is currently rated as noncompensable, and the Board finds that a higher rating is not warranted based on the objective evidence of record.
The deciding factor: The pre-bronchodilator FVC percent predicted most accurately reflects the Veteran’s level of disability, and does not warrant a compensable rating due to lack of obstructive or restrictive lung disease.
- Claimed conditions
- Interstitial fibrosis
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 25, 2019
- Citation
- 19149647
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 882 · Granted: 17% (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 19149647.
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Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Board denied a higher initial disability rating for the service-connected respiratory disability, finding that the Veteran's FVC was only 65% of predicted value, which does not meet the criteria for any compensable rating under the applicable VA Rating Schedule.
- Granted
The Board has determined that the Veteran's interstitial fibrosis is etiologically related to his active-duty service, specifically due to his conceded exposure to Agent Orange. As such, the claim for service connection is granted.
- Denied
The Veteran's interstitial fibrosis was rated at 10 percent, and the Board found that the evidence did not warrant a higher rating.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case for further development and examination to determine if the Veteran's interstitial fibrosis is related to his service, specifically asbestos exposure.
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