Other conditions decisions — 2004

The Board has remanded the case due to incomplete development and the need for additional evidence, including verification of in-service stressors and VA examination.

The veteran's claim to reopen his service connection for left trapezoid strain is being considered. The RO has requested additional evidence, including treatment records from the Little Rock VAMC, and will re-adjudicate the case after these are obtained.

The Board denied the appellant's claim for entitlement to a beginning date earlier than June 13, 2001, for dependent's educational assistance under Chapter 35 due to lack of legal merit.

The Board denied the veteran's request to reopen his service connection claim for a left eye condition, finding that no new and material evidence had been submitted since the August 1977 denial.

The Board denied the veteran's claim for nonservice-connected pension benefits due to a lack of wartime service, and the evidence submitted did not meet the new and material criteria.

The Board denied the appellant's claim for accrued benefits, finding that there were no unpaid benefits to which the veteran was entitled at the time of his death.

The Board found that the appellant knowingly submitted false and fraudulent evidence in her claim for VA benefits, resulting in a forfeiture of all rights, claims, and benefits under VA laws. The appeal challenging this forfeiture is denied.

The Board determined that the appellant's discharge from service was under other than honorable conditions due to his AWOL period, and thus denied his claim for VA benefits.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for spontaneous pneumothorax and residual chest scars, as well as facial tics. The decision found that there was no evidence of a service-connected condition.

The Board denied an initial rating in excess of 10 percent for the residuals of a fracture of the right fourth toe, finding that the disability does not more nearly approximate moderately severe foot disability than moderate foot disability.

The Board has reopened the veteran's claim for service connection of a stomach injury due to new and material evidence, but further development is needed before a final determination can be made.

The Board found no evidence linking the cause of the veteran's death to his service, and denied the claim for service connection.

The veteran's claim for service connection for a claimed innocently acquired psychiatric disorder, including post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), is being remanded to the RO for further development and examination.

The Board denied the veteran's claim for educational assistance benefits under Chapter 30, Title 38, United States Code, for a flight engineer examination taken on August 12, 2001, as the application was filed outside of one year from the date of certification.

The Board denied the veteran's claim of basic eligibility for VA benefits due to lack of service in active military, naval, or air service.

The Board denied the appellant's claim for an effective date earlier than November 1, 1996, for payment of death pension benefits.

The Board found that the appellant's pulmonary disorder, which began before his second period of service, did not undergo a permanent increase in severity as a result of military service.

The Board found that the veteran's cause of death, hypertensive atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, was not caused by or aggravated by his service-connected post-traumatic stress disorder. The Board also determined that he did not meet the criteria for dependency and indemnity compensation under 38 U.S.C.A. § 1318.

The Board has granted service connection for the cause of the veteran's death, finding that his chronic lymphocytic leukemia and pulmonary fibrosis were due to Agent Orange exposure.

The Board denied the appellant's claim for service connection for the cause of her husband's death due to colon cancer, finding that there was no evidence linking the veteran's PTSD to his death and that the veteran did not have a service-connected condition present during active duty or within one year of discharge. The Board also found that the presumptive service connection based on herbicide exposure in Vietnam is not warranted.