Other conditions decisions — 2007

The Board has reopened the veteran's claim for service connection for a bilateral leg disability and remanded it for further development, including obtaining VA and private treatment records and an examination to determine the current nature and likely etiology of the claimed condition.

The Board has remanded the case due to incomplete medical records and need for a VA examination.

The Board found that the submitted evidence was not new and material, thus denying the appellant's request to reopen his claim of basic eligibility for VA benefits.

The Board has determined that a new examination is required to determine the current nature and etiology of the veteran's bilateral knee disorder, as it may be related to active service. The case will be remanded for this purpose.

The veteran's thoracic spine disability is rated at 40 percent effective May 13, 2005. The RO denied an increased rating for the thoracic spine and found no clear and unmistakable error in the January 2006 rating decision.

The Board found that the evidence submitted since the April 1995 rating decision is not new and material, thus denying the veteran's claim to reopen his service connection for chemical burns of the left leg and foot.

The Board denied the appellant's request to reopen her claim for death benefits as a surviving spouse due to lack of new and material evidence, and because her deceased husband did not have recognized military service under VA law.

The veteran withdrew his appeal for specially adapted housing and special home adaptation grant, thus the issues are dismissed.

The Board has remanded the case due to the need for additional evidence regarding asbestos exposure and its potential connection to the veteran's squamous cell carcinoma of the right tonsillar fossa.

The Board found that the veteran does not have varicose veins attributable to his period of military service and denied both his claim for service connection for varicose veins and his claim for an initial rating in excess of 50 percent for PTSD.

The Board has determined that the veteran does not meet the basic eligibility requirements for VA pension benefits due to lack of valid service.

The Board has remanded the case for further action, including scheduling a hearing before a Veterans' Law Judge at the local RO.

The Board has determined that the appellant does not meet the basic eligibility requirements for non-service connected pension benefits due to a lack of qualifying military service.

The Board denied the claim of service connection for the cause of the veteran's death, finding that cardiorespiratory arrest and senility were not related to service or any service-connected disability.

The veteran is seeking payment or reimbursement for medical expenses incurred at St. John's Hospital on November 2, 2004. The VA has requested additional information regarding the nature and urgency of the treatment received, the accessibility of a VA facility, and whether a VA facility was feasibly available.

The Board denied the veteran's claim for service connection in November 1981, and now seeks to reopen his claim based on new evidence. The Board will determine if this new evidence is sufficient to re-open the previously denied claim.

The Board determined that the appellant's character of discharge was under dishonorable conditions due to multiple violations of the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) during his service from February 1956 through October 1957. The appeal is not about service connection, but rather the propriety of his current character of discharge.

The veteran's service connection claim for diverticulitis and diverticulosis is pending, but the appeal regarding his dyspepsia rating has been denied.

The veteran seeks reimbursement for unauthorized medical expenses incurred as a result of emergency room treatment at Northeast Alabama Regional Medical Center on September 18, 19, and 20, 1999. The case is being remanded to the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Medical Center in Birmingham, Alabama, for further development.

The Board has determined that the evidence is in equipoise, and therefore grants service connection for acquired multiple cauda equina neurofibroma tumors.