The Veteran's death was caused by congestive heart failure, which is service-connected based on the evidence of record. The Board found that the cause of death was related to his service-connected condition.
The deciding factor: The Veteran died from congestive heart failure, a condition for which he had a service-connected disability.
- Claimed conditions
- Congestive Heart Failure
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 100%
- Decision date
- January 23, 2020
- Citation
- 20005919
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 Board denied service connection for congestive heart failure, pulmonary hypertension, and pulmonary fibrosis as these conditions were not related to the Veteran's service, including his exposure to Agent Orange.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, but denied service connection for hypertension, congestive heart failure, sleep apnea, and erectile dysfunction.
- Partly granted
The Board denied service connection for COPD, obstructive sleep apnea, atrial fibrillation, and hypertension as not being related to the Veteran's active duty or secondary to his service-connected GAD. However, congestive heart failure was granted due to a secondary relationship with his service-connected GAD.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the case to obtain a medical opinion addressing whether the Veteran's service-connected PTSD caused or aggravated his cardiovascular diseases, which were listed as contributing causes of death.
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