Other conditions decisions — 2010

The Board has determined that there is no competent medical evidence showing a current disability of bilateral arm numbness related to service. As such, the claim for service connection for bilateral arm numbness is denied.

The Veteran's condition was stable enough for VA to transfer him from a private hospital on May 22, 2005. Therefore, the claim for payment of medical services provided by Brooksville Regional Hospital after that date is denied.

The Board found that the Veteran's current sinus disorder is not related to his active duty service and denied the claim.

The Veteran's claim for unauthorized medical expenses incurred in 1999 has been dismissed due to his death.

The Veteran's claim for an increased rating for her service-connected residuals of a fracture at L1 is being remanded due to the need for additional development, including obtaining medical records and scheduling a VA examination.

The Veteran's cutaneous leishmaniasis is manifested by subjective complaints of occasional itching, with no manifestations of deep scars causing limited motion, and affects less than 20 percent of the exposed areas and entire body. The criteria for a higher initial rating are not met.

The Board is remanding the case for further development to determine if the appellant and her children received any benefits following the Veteran's death.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's current back disability was not incurred in or aggravated by service, and arthritis or degenerative joint disease did not manifest to a compensable degree within one year of separation from service.

The Veteran developed damage to her right upper extremity as a result of the July 17, 2007, VA surgery. The medical evidence does not indicate negligence or fault on the part of VA in performing the surgery.

The Veteran's death was attributed to acute leukemia. The appeal is about whether his service-connected bone marrow disorder, linked to Agent Orange exposure, contributed to or accelerated the development of leukemia.

The Board has denied the appellant's request for an earlier effective date of July 22, 2004 for the award of service connection for cause of the Veteran's death due to a lack of entitlement under the law.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for a video conference hearing as requested. The case will be handled by the RO via the Appeals Management Center (AMC).

The Board has determined that new and material evidence has been received to reopen the appellant's claim of entitlement to service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death.

The Board has determined that the Veteran is competent to handle his own VA funds without limitation.

The Veteran's claim for increased evaluation of his right hand disability and compensable evaluation for the scar, mid-left thigh donor site were denied. The RO found that the current evaluations did not meet the criteria for a higher rating.

The Board has determined that further development is needed to determine if the Veteran's death was caused or contributed to by a service-connected condition, and to provide adequate VCAA notice.

The Veteran's claim for payment or reimbursement of unauthorized medical expenses incurred from June 13 to 15, 2008, at Southwest Florida Regional Medical Center in Fort Meyer, Florida is denied as he does not have any adjudicated service-connected disabilities and the transfer to a VA facility was deemed medically safe.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for further evaluation of his chronic bilateral knee disorder, including arthritis and retropatellar pain syndrome. The case will be reconsidered with consideration of the provisions of 38 U.S.C.A. § 1154(b) and Allen v. Brown.

The Board found that the Veteran's overpayment of VA educational assistance benefits was valid, based on investigations revealing a fraud scheme perpetuated by sixty Veterans enrolled at Ramon Magsaysay University.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for further development, including obtaining an opinion regarding the relationship between his laryngeal squamous cell carcinoma and service, as well as evaluating the severity of his service-connected excision of left vocal cord, benign nodule.