The Board has decided that the cause of the Veteran's death was not caused by service-connected conditions, but rather due to asbestos exposure before or following service. However, a remand is needed for clarification on whether the pre-existing condition (asbestos-related disease) aggravated during service.
The deciding factor: The medical evidence does not clearly establish whether the respiratory diseases that caused the Veteran's death were incurred in service or if they were aggravated by service.
- Claimed conditions
- Acute pulmonary embolus, Spontaneous pneumothorax, Severe emphysema
- How they argued it
- Aggravation of a pre-existing condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- August 13, 2019
- Citation
- 19162479
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 19162479.
What this means for you
A remand is not a loss. The Board sent the case back for more development — often a new exam or missing records — before making a final decision. Many remands later end in a grant, and the decision spells out exactly what the Board wanted to see.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's spontaneous pneumothorax is not rated higher than noncompensable due to his lung function scores.,Service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, including ADHD, is remanded as the AOJ did not obtain a medical opinion addressing all relevant theories of entitlement.
- Denied
The Veteran's death was not caused by or related to any service-connected disability.,The Veteran did not meet the requirements for DIC benefits under 38 U.S.C. § 1318 as he had no qualifying wartime service.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for the cause of his death and under 38 U.S.C.A. § 1151, finding that there was no evidence to support the appellant's allegations.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for a medical opinion on whether plantar fasciitis was aggravated by active duty training.
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