The Veteran's appeal for service connection for a lung disability, including interstitial lung disease, desquamative interstitial pneumonia, and pulmonary fibrosis, has been dismissed due to the Veteran's death.
The deciding factor: The Veteran died during the pendency of the appeal, thus the Board does not have jurisdiction to adjudicate the merits of this appeal.
- Claimed conditions
- lung disability, interstitial lung disease, desquamative interstitial pneumonia, pulmonary fibrosis
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 13, 2019
- Citation
- 19185859
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,035 · Granted: 30% (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 19185859.
What this means for you
A dismissal means the Board did not decide the issue on its merits — usually because it was withdrawn or had become moot. It says more about procedure than about whether a claim like this can win.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Veteran's pulmonary fibrosis is related to in-service exposure to herbicide agents, and the Board has granted service connection for this condition.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for pulmonary fibrosis as there is no evidence of a current diagnosis.
- 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.
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