The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for the cause of his death due to lack of evidence showing that a disability caused or contributed substantially or materially to his death. The Board found that schizophrenia, which was already service-connected, did not cause or contribute to his death.,Regarding the denial of compensation under 38 U.S.C. § 1151 for ARDS, the Board determined that there was no evidence showing VA carelessness, negligence, lack of proper skill, error in judgment, or similar instance of fault on VA's part. The Veteran’s condition was not caused by his use of Risperidone and he had a positive response to it for years.
The deciding factor: The preponderance of the evidence did not show that any service-connected disability either caused or contributed substantially or materially to the Veteran's death.
- Claimed conditions
- schizophrenia, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 18, 2020
- Citation
- 20026889
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 20026889.
What this means for you
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Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Veteran's respiratory disability, including asthma and COPD, is denied as service connection is not warranted due to the condition being solely attributed to smoking.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeal for a higher rating for right foot disability status post Mitchell's bunionectomy is granted with an effective date of July 25, 2023.,The Veteran's appeal for a higher rating for left foot disability status post Mitchell's bunionectomy is dismissed as it does not meet the criteria for an earlier effective date.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for asthma, COPD, pancreatitis, stroke, and left arm weakness (claimed as secondary to stroke) based on the presumption of exposure to contaminated water at Camp Lejeune. The evidence did not support a finding that these conditions were related to service or due to in-service exposure.
- Granted
The Veteran's schizophrenia is rated at 70 percent, indicating significant impairment in work and social functioning.
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