The Veteran's death was not caused by any service-connected disability, and there is no evidence linking his death to exposure to herbicides during service. The Board denied the claim for service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death.
The deciding factor: There is no indication that either the Veteran’s service-connected tinnitus or hearing loss, nor his presumed exposure to herbicide exposure, were either the principal or a contributory cause of his death.
- Claimed conditions
- malignant neo liver, not otherwise specified, respiratory failure, cardiac arrest
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- February 21, 2020
- Citation
- 20013776
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 20013776.
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 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.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board denied service connection for the cause of death due to lack of evidence showing a link between any service-connected disability and the Veteran's death. The conditions listed on his death certificate were not related to his military service.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Veteran's death due to cardiac arrest and atherosclerotic heart disease was not related or attributable to his military service, thus denying the claim for service connection for cause of death.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Veteran's ambulance expenses for fainting on March 22, 2022 and cardiac arrest on September 6, 2022 are granted.,VA facilities were not feasibly available during the medical emergencies.
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