The Board has determined that the cause of the Veteran's death, respiratory failure and interstitial lung disease, is related to his service in Vietnam where he was exposed to herbicides. As a result, the claim for service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death is granted.
The deciding factor: A positive medical opinion linked the cause of the Veteran’s death to exposure to Agent Orange during service.
- Claimed conditions
- respiratory failure, interstitial lung disease
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- Agent Orange / herbicides
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 7, 2019
- Citation
- 19177178
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,421 · Granted: 31% (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 19177178.
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 Veteran's causes of death were not found to be service-connected, as there was no credible evidence linking the conditions to his military service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claims for earlier effective dates and increased ratings are being remanded due to the need for further review of the evidence. The Board is unable to determine if there was a factual increase in disability prior to the effective dates requested, or if service connection should be granted based on the current evidence.
- Granted
The Veteran is granted special monthly compensation (SMC) at the (o) rate and SMC(r)(1) rate effective May 13, 2024. The decision is based on his service-connected PTSD and other disabilities that require aid and attendance.
- Granted
The Veteran is granted special monthly compensation (SMC) at the (o) rate and SMC(r)(1) rate effective May 13, 2024. The decision is based on his service-connected PTSD and other disabilities that require aid and attendance.
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