The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for a lung disability, finding that the evidence does not support a link between the Veteran's lung condition and his military service.
The deciding factor: The clinician concluded there is no nexus in service, at separation, within one year of service, or for an absolute minimum of 17 years and likely more. The Veteran's smoking history was identified as the single greatest cause of adult-onset respiratory conditions.
- Claimed conditions
- lung disability
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 18, 2024
- Citation
- 24002820
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.
- Partly granted
The Board denied ratings in excess of 30 percent for bilateral foot disability, a rating in excess of 30 percent for left knee disability, and a rating in excess of 10 percent for lung disability. However, it granted an effective date of December 17, 2012, but no earlier, for the award service connection for limitation of extension of the left knee and left knee scar, and granted TDIU from January 17, 2013 to November 5, 2018.
- Partly granted
The Board granted a 10 percent disability rating for the service-connected scar, status-post appendectomy, but denied all other claims for increased ratings and service connection.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for service connection for lung disability to obtain an addendum opinion addressing the etiology of the Veteran's lung conditions, including COPD and biapical lung scarring.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for a psychiatric disability, lung disability, and heart disability. The claims for migraines/sinus headaches, allergic rhinitis, sinusitis, and sleep apnea were remanded for further development.
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