The Board denied service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death, finding that none of his service-connected disabilities caused or substantially contributed to his death.
The deciding factor: The VA medical opinions found no causal relationship between the Veteran's service-connected conditions and his primary causes of death: acute respiratory failure, obstructive sleep apnea, hypercapnia, hypoxia, morbid obesity, and congestive heart failure.
- Claimed conditions
- acute respiratory failure, obstructive sleep apnea, hypercapnia, hypoxia, morbid obesity, congestive heart failure
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 8, 2021
- Citation
- 21062595
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.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for obstructive sleep apnea, effective from the date of the February 2025 rating decision.
- Dismissed
The appeal for a compensable rating for left ear hearing loss, service connection for right ear hearing loss, and bilateral vision condition was dismissed. Service connection for hypertension, congestive heart failure, and coronary artery disease was denied.
- Dismissed
The Veteran withdrew the appeals for service connection for bilateral pes planus, obstructive sleep apnea, bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the issue of entitlement to service connection for obstructive sleep apnea due to a duty to assist error.
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This is general information, not legal advice. For advice about your own situation, talk to a VA-accredited representative — many help for free.