Other conditions decisions — 2008

The Board has decided to remand the case for additional development, including obtaining service medical records and arranging for a VA examination.

The Board denied the veteran's request for waiver of recovery of an overpayment of VA non-service-connected pension benefits in the original amount of $13,949.90 due to his failure to submit a timely application for waiver within 180 days of receiving notification of the overpayment.

The Board denied the appellant's claim for service connection for the cause of her husband's death, finding that his service-connected disabilities did not contribute to his death.

The Board has remanded the case due to a lack of clinical records from the veteran's intracranial meningioma resection surgery, and a need for an examination to determine if the facial nerve palsy and left eye diplopia were usual effects of the surgery.

The veteran seeks payment for unauthorized medical expenses received at a private hospital. The VA denied the claim, but the Board finds additional development is necessary to determine if the treatment was an emergency and if a VA facility was feasibly available.

The Board denied the veteran's claim for payment or reimbursement of private medical services received at Flagler Hospital due to lack of evidence showing a medical emergency and that VA facilities were not feasibly available.

The veteran's appeal is being remanded for a hearing before the Board at the RO.

The Board has denied the veteran's claim for an extension of a temporary total rating due to surgical convalescence for his service-connected right toe disability, as subsequent medical evidence does not show continued need for convalescence beyond March 31, 2006.

The Board found that the veteran's right frontal meningioma and post-operative residuals were not incurred in or aggravated by active service, nor may they be presumed to have been incurred or aggravated therein. The claim was denied.

The veteran is seeking service connection for bronchiectasis, including as due to herbicide exposure. The case has been remanded for further development and examination.

The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient consideration of medical opinions and VA's duty to assist. A VA examination is needed to determine if the veteran's squamous cell carcinoma is related to his service, including Agent Orange exposure.

The Board has remanded the case for further development, including searching for records related to an alleged assault in November 1968 at Lockbourne Air Force Base. The veteran is also scheduled for a travel board hearing.

The Board has determined that the veteran's service-connected residuals of fractured left mandible and maxilla with temporomandibular joint dysfunction do not warrant a disability evaluation in excess of 10 percent, as his condition is manifested by moderate displacement. The facial scars are also rated at 10 percent.

The veteran's claim for compensation based on loss of use of both hands and basic eligibility to Dependents Educational Assistance (DEA) was granted with an effective date of November 27, 2002.

The November 4, 1960 decision denying service connection for retinal degeneration is reversed and service connection is established.

The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection for cataracts and to reopen his claim for a vision disability, including strabismus, diplopia, and amblyopia. The evidence submitted since the last denial was found to be cumulative.

The veteran's attorney fees from past-due benefits in the amount of $44,249.51 based on the August 27, 2003 rating decision were correctly calculated and he is not entitled to additional attorney fees.

The veteran's overpayment of VA compensation benefits was denied as the claimant failed to report his divorce timely, and the RO proposed reducing his benefits based on this information. The Committee on Waivers and Compromises (COWC) subsequently denied a waiver request due to the claimant not reporting changes in dependents.

The Board found that the veteran's current spine disorder is not related to any incident in service and denied his claim for service connection.

The appellant does not have spina bifida, which is a requirement for the benefits sought under Chapter 18 of the U.S. Code.