BVA decisions by condition
Tuberculosis pulmonary active or inactive: BVA grant rates and what wins
From 2017 to 2026, the Board of Veterans' Appeals decided a tuberculosis pulmonary active or inactive issue in 1,101 decisions. It granted the tuberculosis pulmonary active or inactive issue in 6.3% of them, below the 19.4% grant rate for all conditions, denied it in 46.5%, and remanded it in 44.3%. Counting only decisions on the merits (granted or denied), 11.9% were granted.
From Board of Veterans' Appeals decisions: appeals, not VA's first decisions. Issue-level outcomes.
Decisions
1,101
2017–2026
Granted
6.3%
All conditions: 19.4%
Granted on the merits
11.9%
Granted ÷ (granted + denied)
Remanded
44.3%
Denied: 46.5%
At a glance
Evidence in granted and denied tuberculosis pulmonary active or inactive decisions
For each kind of supporting evidence: how often the Board granted the tuberculosis pulmonary active or inactive issue on the merits when the decision mentioned it, compared with decisions that did not. These are associations, not causes, and evidence is recorded per decision, not per issue.
| In the record | Decisions | Granted when present | When absent | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Claimed as secondary | 57 | 50.0% | 10.5% | +39.5 pts |
| Positive nexus opinion | 133 | 36.2% | 7.2% | +29.0 pts |
| Favorable VA exam | 115 | 31.5% | 8.3% | +23.1 pts |
| Private medical opinion | 293 | 15.6% | 10.4% | +5.2 pts |
| Treating physician opinion | 47 | 16.7% | 11.6% | +5.1 pts |
| Combat service | 60 | 10.8% | 11.9% | −1.1 pts |
| Lay statement | 849 | 8.2% | 27.8% | −19.5 pts |
- The Board applied the benefit-of-the-doubt rule (38 CFR 3.102) in 66.7% of the decisions that granted tuberculosis pulmonary active or inactive.
- The Board found the veteran's statements credible in 29.0% of grants and 11.5% of denials.
Negative evidence in the record
An unfavorable exam or a negative nexus opinion often sits in the same record as favorable evidence, and the Board weighs them against each other. So these rows show how often tuberculosis pulmonary active or inactive was still granted when the record contained the negative item, not that the item helped.
| In the record | Decisions | Granted when present | When absent | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Negative nexus opinion | 445 | 7.4% | 15.8% | −8.4 pts |
| Unfavorable VA exam | 676 | 8.4% | 21.0% | −12.6 pts |
Recent tuberculosis pulmonary active or inactive decisions
Granted
Current diagnosis of cryptococcal meningitis.; Opinions from VA treating provider and examiners link meningitis to HIV/AIDS.; Weight of evidence supports finding meningitis proximately due to HIV/AIDS.
Current disability for positive TB test; Link to deployment exposures suggested by private opinion; Evidence evenly balanced, doubt resolved in veteran's favor
Dr. M.T. found onset during active duty, persisting to present.; Service treatment records indicate tuberculosis during service.; Veteran entered service without tuberculosis.
Denied
No current diagnosis of bone cancer; Veteran testified he does not have bone cancer; No evidence of bone cancer in service or post-service records
No current diagnosis for INH therapy residuals; No proof of present disability; VA examiner provided negative nexus opinion
New and relevant evidence received; Veteran's assertions presumed credible for reopening
Tuberculosis pulmonary active or inactive outcomes by year
| Year | Issues decided | Granted | Denied | Remanded | Other |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | 146 | 4.1% | 46.6% | 42.5% | 6.8% |
| 2018 | 187 | 2.7% | 50.8% | 39.6% | 7.0% |
| 2019 | 197 | 5.1% | 46.7% | 46.2% | 2.0% |
| 2020 | 108 | 2.8% | 38.0% | 57.4% | 1.9% |
| 2021 | 93 | 7.5% | 53.8% | 37.6% | 1.1% |
| 2022 | 89 | 6.7% | 43.8% | 47.2% | 2.2% |
| 2023 | 112 | 6.3% | 43.8% | 49.1% | 0.9% |
| 2024 | 89 | 9.0% | 40.4% | 50.6% | 0.0% |
| 2025 | 78 | 16.7% | 47.4% | 32.1% | 3.8% |
Each row counts issues (each condition the Board decided), so the shares add up to 100%. Other: dismissed, withdrawn or no clear outcome. Years with fewer than 50 issues are left out.
Why the Board granted or denied tuberculosis pulmonary active or inactive
Most common reasons in grants
- Current diagnosis established17
- Service connection established4
- Caused by the service-connected disability3
- Service records negative or silent2
- Criteria for service connection met2
- In-service diagnosis and treatment2
- Evidence raises reasonable possibility of substantiating claim2
- New and material evidence received to reopen claim2
Most common reasons in denials
- No current diagnosis170
- Preponderance of the evidence against the claim53
- Current diagnosis established45
- Service records negative or silent38
- VA examiner: less likely than not related to service15
- Criteria for service connection not met14
- No in-service complaints, treatment or diagnosis13
- Positive ppd test is a laboratory finding, not a disability8
Numbers are decisions that gave the reason. Reasons are short phrases extracted by AI from each decision; common wordings of the same reason are grouped. Benefit of the doubt is reported above.
Rules that apply to tuberculosis pulmonary active or inactive claims
- 38 CFR 3.303
Principles of service connection
Read it in VA Law Explorer - 38 CFR 3.310
Secondary service connection and aggravation
Read it in VA Law Explorer - 38 CFR 3.102
Reasonable doubt (benefit of the doubt)
Read it in VA Law Explorer
Research your tuberculosis pulmonary active or inactive case
Narrow by year, judge, evidence or secondary condition, read the decisions, and export a research memo.
How these numbers are calculated
- Rates count decisions in which the Board decided a tuberculosis pulmonary active or inactive issue, by the outcome of that issue. Other issues in the same decision can have different outcomes.
- “Granted on the merits” leaves out remands and dismissals. “All conditions” is the grant share across every condition issue in the data.
- The data comes from CaseScribe's AI extraction of public BVA decisions (2017–2026) and can contain errors. It is updated automatically as new decisions are added.
Where this data comes from
- Claim
- Regional office decides
- Veteran appeals
- Board decides
- Granted · Denied · Remanded: back to the regional office
Board of Veterans' Appeals decisions show how VA's highest review body applies 38 CFR and weighs evidence on contested claims.
Each one is an appeal: a regional office decided the claim first, and the veteran appealed. So these rates describe the Board, not a veteran's odds at the regional office, where most claims are decided and whose decisions are not public.
More on what Board decisions can and cannot tell you