The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for viral pneumonia, finding that there is no current diagnosis of the condition and that it was not incurred during service.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner concluded that the Veteran does not have a current diagnosis of viral pneumonia and found that his claimed condition was less likely caused by an in-service injury or event.
- Claimed conditions
- viral pneumonia
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- August 16, 2019
- Citation
- 19163808
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,287 · Granted: 23% (granted or partly granted, in the indexed 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. Read the original VA decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 19163808.
What this means for you
A final Board denial may be appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, generally within 120 days of the Board mailing date. A Supplemental Claim with new and relevant evidence is a separate option. Another Higher-Level Review of the Board decision is not available. Check your own notice: this historical decision does not set your deadline.
What you can do next
Use your own notice and decision stage. A remanded issue is not a final court-appealable denial. VA review guidance and CAVC filing instructions (U.S. federal; reviewed October 7, 2026).
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board denied service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death due to insufficient evidence linking his fatal conditions (hypoxemic respiratory failure, pulmonary fibrosis, and viral pneumonia) to exposure to Agent Orange during service. The Board also denied DIC benefits as the Veteran did not meet the criteria for receiving such benefits.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Board has determined that the veteran's cause of death was due to his in-service tobacco use, which contributed substantially to his terminal lung disability.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board has determined that the veteran's claims of entitlement to service connection for a heart disorder, platelike atelectasis, right lower lobe, and viral pneumonia are not well grounded. As such, these claims have been denied.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board found that the veteran's cause of death was due to complications from plasmacytoma, but did not meet the criteria for service connection as it occurred more than one year after separation from service.
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