Citation Nr: 21067408 Decision Date: 11/04/21 Archive Date: 11/04/21 DOCKET NO. 20-07 425 DATE: November 4, 2021 ORDER Entitlement to service connection for calcified plural plaques is granted. FINDING OF FACT The Veteran's calcified plural plaques disability is related to asbestos exposure in service. CONCLUSION OF LAW The criteria for service connection for calcified plural plaques are met. 38 U.S.C. §§ 1110, 1131, 5107; 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.102, 3.303. REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDING AND CONCLUSION The Veteran served on active duty in the United States Navy from May 1958 to May 1962. This matter comes before the Board of Veterans' Appeals (Board) from a November 2018 rating decision from the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO). The Veteran appeared for a hearing before the undersigned Veterans Law Judge (VLJ) in October 2021. This appeal has been advanced on the Board's docket pursuant to 38 C.F.R. § 20.902(c). Entitlement to service connection for calcified plural plaques The Veteran contends that he currently suffers from a lung condition due to exposure to asbestos in service. Service connection may be established for disability resulting from personal injury suffered or disease contracted in the line of duty in the active military, naval, or air service. 38 U.S.C. §§ 1110, 1131. Service connection may also be granted for any injury or disease diagnosed after discharge, when all the evidence, including that pertinent to service, establishes that the disease or injury was incurred in service. 38 C.F.R. § 3.303(d). There is no specific statutory guidance for asbestos-related claims, nor has VA promulgated any regulations regarding such claims. VA has, however, issued guidelines for compensation claims based on exposure to asbestos. The adjudication of a claim for service connection for a disability resulting from asbestos exposure should include: (1) a determination as to whether the Veteran's service records demonstrate the Veteran was exposed to asbestos during service; (2) development sufficient to determine whether the Veteran was exposed to asbestos either before or after service; and (3) a determination as to whether a relationship exists between the Veteran's in-service asbestos exposure and the claimed disease. The Veteran has a diagnosis of calcified pleural plaques in the lung. See June 2016 private treatment records. Service records reflect that the Veteran's rating was machinist's mate. This rating is associated with probable exposure to asbestos. Therefore, the record establishes that the Veteran was exposed to asbestos in service. Accordingly, the question is whether calcified pleural plaques in the lung are related to asbestos exposure. CT and x-ray evidence indicates the plaques are compatible with asbestos exposure. See, e.g., June 2016 private treatment records. The Board notes that both the September 2018 and January 2020 VA examiners declined to diagnose the Veteran with a pulmonary condition, noting that his complaints of shortness of breath were likely related to his heart condition. Accordingly, neither examiner provided an etiology opinion. That said, while the question of whether the Veteran's pleural plaques result in a compensable disability may need to be answered later, the evidence is nevertheless clear that the Veteran's plaques are related to his in-service asbestos exposure. Accordingly, the Board finds the evidence to at least be in equipoise as to whether the Veteran's current calcified pleural plaques is due to asbestos exposure in service. After resolving all doubt in favor of the Veteran, the Board finds that service connection for calcified pleural plaques is warranted. 38 U.S.C. § 5107; 38 C.F.R. § 3.102. Evan M. Deichert Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans' Appeals Attorney for the Board K.L. Blevins, Associate Counsel The Board's decision in this case is binding only with respect to the instant matter decided. This decision is not precedential and does not establish VA policies or interpretations of general applicability. 38 C.F.R. § 20.1303.