Other conditions decisions — 2014

The Board has remanded the case for additional development, including scheduling a personal hearing and providing the appellant with a supplemental statement of the case.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for payment or reimbursement of unauthorized medical expenses due to emergency room treatment at Tallahassee Memorial Hospital, finding that the services were not rendered in a medical emergency and VA facilities were feasibly available.

The Veteran's request for a hearing has been advanced and the case is being remanded to the RO for further action, including scheduling a videoconference or Travel Board hearing.

The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient medical evidence and the need for a VA examination regarding the Veteran's claim of service connection for residuals of cold injury of the upper extremities.

The Board found that the appellant's condition was not emergent and VA facilities were feasibly available, thus denying his claim for payment of unauthorized medical expenses incurred at LMH on September 30, 2010.

The Veteran's claim for payment or reimbursement of unauthorized medical expenses incurred in September 2010 was denied because the Veteran did not meet one of the necessary requirements under 38 U.S.C.A. § 1725, specifically that he had to have received medical care from VA within the 24-month period preceding the services rendered by a private provider.

The Veteran's claim for payment or reimbursement of medical services provided by Florida Hospital Medical Center is denied as the Veteran has other health care coverage.

The VA denied payment or reimbursement for medical services provided at Rochester General Hospital on August 21, 2011 because the treatment was not for a service-connected condition and since he had another recourse (Medicare) to cover the costs.

The Board has remanded the case for additional development, including obtaining medical opinions regarding whether the Veteran's myotonic dystrophy Type 2 is a disease or defect and if so, whether it was clearly and unmistakably not aggravated by military service.

The Board has ordered a remand to address the Veteran's claim for service connection for residuals of carcinoma of the maxillary sinuses. The remand requires further examination and consideration of her in-service sinus/eye pressure/headache treatment, as well as her representative's theory that she developed this cancer due to medication prescribed for her service-connected paranoid schizophrenia.

The Board has decided to remand the case for additional development, including obtaining service personnel and treatment records. The appeal is not about service connection.

The Veteran's left foot disability, including hallux rigidus and metatarsalgia, has been rated at 30 percent since September 26, 2008. The temporary total rating for convalescence following surgery on September 26, 2008 was granted until September 2009.

The Veteran was diagnosed with a variant of ALS/Lou Gehrig's Disease in 2001, and the Board found that this condition is presumptively service-connected due to its development after discharge. The claim for service connection is granted.

The Board has denied the appellant's claim for basic eligibility to nonservice-connected death pension benefits as her spouse did not have the required military service to qualify for VA benefits.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for a liver disorder, to include as secondary to his service-connected pulmonary sarcoidosis, has been denied by the Board of Veterans' Appeals.

The Veteran's helpless child is entitled to an apportionment of up to 20 percent of the Veteran's VA disability compensation, with adjustments for each year during the period under review.

The Veteran's claim for an increased rating for residuals of a right mandible fracture with myofascial pain dysfunction and traumatic arthritis of the temporomandibular joints was granted, with a final effective date of November 19, 2013.

The Veteran's appeal for a separate rating for residuals of a gunshot wound to the face other than tooth damage is REMANDED. The TDIU claim is granted.

The Board has granted service connection for a not otherwise specified mood disorder and assigned an effective date of November 1, 2007. The Veteran's basic eligibility for VA improved pension benefits is established.

The Board has determined that the appellant is not entitled to recognition as the Veteran's surviving spouse for purposes of VA benefits due to a separation prior to the Veteran's death, which was not caused by the Veteran's misconduct.