The Veteran's initial rating for residuals of pneumonia associated with achalasia is granted at a 60 percent level, and his higher rating for achalasia is also granted. The issues are related to the severity of these conditions.
The deciding factor: The evidence shows that the Veteran’s respiratory condition (pneumonia) and esophageal stricture (achalasia) have remained constant throughout the appeal period, with significant impact on his ability to swallow solid foods and requiring a soft or pureed diet. The symptoms of dysphagia, regurgitation, nausea, vomiting, heartburn, and recurrent pneumonia are consistent with an 80 percent rating for achalasia.
- Claimed conditions
- Pneumonia, Achalasia
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 60%
- Decision date
- June 25, 2019
- Citation
- 19149698
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,604 · Granted: 65% (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 19149698.
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.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death, finding that none of the listed causes were related to his military service and no service-connected disability contributed to his death.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim of service connection for cause of death, finding that his service-connected conditions did not contribute to his death. The evidence showed well-controlled heart symptoms prior to death and no causal relationship between anxiety and cardiopulmonary disease or renal failure.
- Denied
The Veteran's death was not caused by any service-connected disability, and the criteria for DIC under 38 U.S.C. § 1318 were not met.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the case to obtain an adequate opinion regarding the Veteran's cause of death, specifically addressing toxic exposures during service and submitted medical literature.
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