The Veteran's back disability is service-connected and rated at 40 percent. The cause of death, pulmonary fibrosis, was not related to his military service.,Service connection for the cause of death cannot be established as the preponderance of evidence shows that the Veteran’s service-connected back disability did not contribute substantially or materially to his death.
The deciding factor: The Board found that the Veteran's service-connected back disability did not cause or contribute substantially or materially to his death. The cause of death, pulmonary fibrosis, was not related to his military service and there is no evidence showing it was caused by a service-connected condition.,Service connection for the cause of death cannot be established as the preponderance of evidence shows that the Veteran’s service-connected back disability did not contribute substantially or materially to his death.
- Claimed conditions
- Back disability, Pulmonary fibrosis
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 40%
- Decision date
- July 16, 2019
- Citation
- 19154506
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 19154506.
What this means for you
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What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
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- Granted
The Veteran's rating for residuals status post lumbar fusion was reduced from 40 percent to 20 percent effective October 25, 2023. The reduction was granted as there was no evidence of actual improvement in the Veteran's condition prior to this date.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claim for service connection for a back disability is being remanded due to duty-to-assist errors and the need for a VA examination.
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