The Veteran's death was not caused by a service-connected disability, and there is no evidence of exposure to herbicide agents in Korea. Therefore, the claim for service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death is denied.
The deciding factor: There is no probative evidence linking any disabilities from which the Veteran died to service or service-connected conditions.
- Claimed conditions
- asystole, respiratory failure, anoxic brain event, atriial fibrillation, pneumonia
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- February 26, 2020
- Citation
- 20014763
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 20014763.
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: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the issues of service connection for atrial fibrillation, benign prostatic hypertrophy with outflow obstruction, congestive heart failure, and hypertension due to inadequate VA opinions. The Veteran's exposure during service is conceded to include asbestos and gas chamber exposures.
- 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 the Veteran's claims for service connection for pneumonia, diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA), and asthma as causes of death. The evidence did not support finding that these conditions were related to his service-connected disabilities.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the case due to insufficient consideration of secondary service connection for coronary artery disease (CAD) related to the Veteran's service-connected foot disability and depression.
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