Other conditions decisions — 2006

The Board has remanded the case for further development, including obtaining Social Security Administration records and readjudicating the service connection claim for cause of death and Survivors' and Dependents' Educational Assistance under chapter 35.

The Board has determined that the veteran's current psychiatric disability, diagnosed as a substance-induced mood disorder, was not incurred in or aggravated by his active military service and may not be presumed to have been incurred in service.

The Board found that the veteran was not at fault in creating the overpayment and its collection would impose an undue hardship. The decision grants a waiver of recovery of the overpayment.

The veteran's claim for an initial compensable evaluation for residuals of a left little finger fracture is denied as the disability does not result in limitation of motion of other digits, interference with the overall function of the hand, or any condition of the finger analogous to amputation.

The Board denied service connection for a pulmonary embolism and bilateral leg disability, finding that the conditions were not related to any incident of service.

The Board found that the veteran's skin disorder was not incurred in service and is not related to his service-connected hepatitis C. As a result, the claim for service connection for a skin disorder was denied.

The Board denied the veteran's waiver of overpayment claim, finding that the overpayments were properly created and there was no statutory bar to recovery. The case is remanded for further consideration under the standard of equity and good conscience.

The Board has determined that an effective date earlier than June 19, 1996 for the award of a 100% evaluation for status post myocardial infarction is legally precluded.

The veteran's service-connected degenerative joint disease of the right and left knees, as well as residuals from lipoma excision, are each rated at 10 percent. The RO has denied all claims for higher ratings.

The Board has remanded the case due to new evidence received and VCAA notification issues.

The veteran's annual income and net worth preclude the payment of VA disability pension.

The Board finds that the veteran's death was not caused by a service-connected disability and thus, he is denied service connection for the cause of his death. Additionally, the appellant is not entitled to burial benefits as the veteran did not die from a service-connected disability.

The veteran's claim for service connection for panic disorder with agoraphobia was granted, and the effective date is set at March 15, 1984.

The Board has remanded the case to the RO for further proceedings consistent with an October 2005 Order from the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, which indicated that the appellant's arguments regarding VA's failure to provide information and counseling were not addressed by the Board in its decision. The RO must address these arguments and obtain an updated financial status report from the veteran.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased evaluations for his service-connected status post neck injury with weakness, right and left upper extremities. The initial evaluations were granted at 10 percent from April 7, 2000 to November 29, 2005, but not higher than 20 percent thereafter.

The Board found that the veteran did not submit a timely substantive appeal regarding his claim for waiver of overpayment of pension benefits in the amount of $7,233.20 and thus lacked jurisdiction to consider this issue.

The Board found that the appellant's service-connected residuals of a shell fragment wound to Muscle Group XI of the right leg are manifested by no more than a moderately severe injury, and thus denied an increased rating.

The Board has remanded the case for additional development, including obtaining a CT scan and scheduling a VA pulmonary examination to determine the nature and etiology of any pulmonary disorder, including whether it is related to asbestos exposure during service.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings for his service-connected shrapnel injuries to the left hand and arms, as well as his claim to reopen a previously denied claim for service connection for residuals of shrapnel injuries to the right and left legs. The evidence did not support an increase in rating or reopening of the claim.

The Board found that the appellant was not the veteran's surviving spouse for VA purposes due to conflicting evidence and the fact that the veteran entered into a common law marriage with another woman prior to September 17, 2003. The appellant did not meet the criteria for entitlement to VA death pension benefits as a surviving spouse.