Other conditions decisions — 2011

The Board denied the Veteran's request to reopen his claim of entitlement to service connection for a right eye vision disability and found that he did not submit new and material evidence. The claim for an increased rating for low back disorder was also denied.

The Veteran's spouse died before the enactment of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, so the Appellant is not eligible for a one-time payment from the Filipino Veterans Equity Compensation Fund.

The Board found that the Veteran's skin disorders of the left hand and both feet did not have their onset in service or are otherwise related to his military service, thus denying his claim for service connection.

The Veteran's death was not caused by a service-connected condition, and the Board found no evidence of clear and unmistakable error in prior VA decisions.

The Veteran's residuals of a left hamstring tear are manifested by pain, and the disability is currently rated as 10 percent disabling. The Board finds that the criteria for a higher rating have not been met.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded to search for clinical service treatment records, including those from his active duty service. The case will be reviewed again after the additional development.

The Veteran's service-connected residuals of a traumatic fracture of the second and third proximal phalanx (index and middle fingers) of his left hand are currently evaluated as 20 percent disabling, which is not in excess of what is warranted based on the evidence of record.

The Board finds that the Veteran's anatomical loss of feet does not result in an inability to achieve natural knee action with prosthesis, and thus, he is not entitled to a higher rate of special monthly compensation.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claim for additional evidence, specifically VA treatment records from 2000 to 2011 related to her spine disability. The case will be readjudicated after obtaining this information.

The Veteran's claim for an initial compensable rating for service-connected bilateral chronic otitis externa was denied because he failed to report for a scheduled VA examination without good cause.

The Veteran's right hand injury is rated at a 10% disability rating for degenerative joint disease with painful motion.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for residuals of frozen feet is being remanded due to the need for additional development, including obtaining STRs and arranging for a VA examination.

The Board has determined that the appellant's income exceeded the maximum annual rate for VA improved death pension benefits, and thus denied her claim.

The Veteran's death was due to small cell bronchogenic carcinoma, and the appellant is seeking service connection for this cause of death. The claim will be remanded to obtain additional information regarding potential radiation exposure during service.

The appeal has been withdrawn by the appellant before a decision was made.

The Veteran died in October 1999 and was granted service connection for his fatal cancer on a presumptive basis as a result of exposure to herbicides in Vietnam. As such, burial benefits were authorized up to $1,500. The appellant's claim is denied because the maximum allowable burial benefit has already been paid.

The Veteran's claims for earlier effective dates for SMC awards related to loss of use of both buttocks and right foot are being remanded due to the need for additional medical opinions regarding the level of disability prior to October 1996.

The Veteran does not have a diagnosed disability of either hip and the Board finds that there is no in-service injury or disease manifesting symptoms claimed as a bilateral hip condition, and that symptoms were not chronic in service. The Veteran does not have current symptoms of a bilateral hip disorder.

The Board denied the Veteran's request for an effective date earlier than June 14, 2006 for a grant of service connection for bilateral greater trochanter bursitis as there was no pending claim prior to that date.

The Veteran's spouse is not eligible for CHAMPVA benefits because she did not have Medicare Part B coverage, which was required due to the effective date of her TDIU rating being after June 5, 2001.