The Board denied service connection for COPD, finding that the Veteran's asthma pre-existed service and was not aggravated by active duty. The Board also found against service connection for COPD due to lack of evidence showing it existed prior to service or being related to exposure during Desert Storm.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner concluded that the Veteran’s COPD did not exist prior to service and was less likely caused or aggravated by service, attributing its onset to tobacco smoking rather than environmental exposures.
- Claimed conditions
- Asthma, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 23, 2020
- Citation
- 20080861
What this means for you
A denial is a starting point, not the end of the road. You can see why this claim fell short — and, if you are still inside the one-year window, the appeal lanes that may remain open to you.
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 asbestosis, bronchitis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), rhinitis, sinusitis, and asthma. The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss was also denied a compensable rating.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for various disabilities and denied higher ratings for several service-connected conditions.
- Granted
The Board granted a 30 percent disability rating for asthma from August 23, 2021 to May 14, 2022.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for COPD as secondary to diabetes and denied increased ratings for peripheral neuropathy conditions, while dismissing claims related to upper extremity neuropathy.
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