The Board denied service connection for the cause of death due to lack of evidence linking the Veteran's heart condition, which caused his death, to his military service or exposure to herbicide agents (Agent Orange).
The deciding factor: There was no established exposure to herbicide agents and insufficient evidence linked the Veteran’s fatal heart disability to his military service.
- Claimed conditions
- cardiac arrest, cerebrovascular accident
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- May 15, 2020
- Citation
- 20034120
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 20034120.
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 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: Granted
The Veteran's service-connected hypertension, cerebrovascular accident, and coronary artery disease are found to be causally linked to his ME/CFS. Service connection for ME/CFS is granted.
- 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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