Other conditions decisions — 2015

The Board has remanded the case for a travel board hearing at the New Orleans RO due to the Veteran's inability to attend the previously scheduled hearing. The appeal will be returned to the Board after the hearing.

The Veteran's claim for an initial schedular rating higher than 30 percent for right eye aphakia and left eye nuclear sclerotic cataract was granted. The current evaluation is 30 percent, effective December 10, 2002.

The Board has determined that the Veteran does not have a current undiagnosed illness manifested by joint pain, and his symptoms are part of his service-connected undiagnosed illness manifested by fatigue.

The appellant is not recognized as the Veteran's surviving child for VA Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC) and death pension benefits due to her age at application and lack of evidence showing she was permanently incapable of self-support prior to turning 18 years old.

The Board has granted service connection for chronic myeloid leukemia, graft versus host disease, and bilateral ocular surface disease as secondary to the Veteran's service-connected conditions.

The Board finds that the Veteran does not have a current diagnosis of memory loss and therefore, service connection for this condition is denied.

The Board denied a request for an effective date prior to March 23, 2010 for the addition of the Veteran's spouse as his dependent due to notification being received several years after the date of either his 2005 informal marriage or 2007 contractual marriage.

The appellant is seeking service connection for the cause of her deceased husband's death. The case has been remanded due to the appellant not receiving notice of a scheduled Board hearing.

The Veteran is seeking service connection for a recurrent skin disorder, including cancer and moles, claimed as the result of herbicide exposure during his service in the Republic of Vietnam. The Board has remanded the case due to incomplete medical records and the need for a VA dermatological examination.

The RO found the Veteran competent and no longer required a fiduciary, thus dismissing the appeal.

The Board has determined that the appellant is not a person who bore the expense of last sickness and burial, thus denying the claim for reimbursement of expenses from accrued benefits based on the Veteran's last illness.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for residuals of a status post excision right upper arm lipoma is granted as the evidence is in equipoise regarding whether the current condition is related to an in-service nodule.

The Veteran does not have a permanent total service-connected disability, and therefore does not meet the eligibility requirements for Dependent Education Assistance (DEA) benefits under 38 U.S.C.A. Chapter 35.

The Veteran's death did not qualify for burial benefits as he was not receiving VA pension or disability compensation, had no pending claims, and died from non-service-connected causes while hospitalized by a private facility.

The Veteran's active duty service from February to May 1978 does not qualify for wartime service, and thus the claim for nonservice-connected pension benefits is denied.

The Board has remanded the case for additional development, including obtaining relevant medical records and attempting to obtain service treatment records. The Veteran died of congestive heart failure, disruption of the mitral valve, and acute bacterial endocarditis.

The Veteran's recurrent urinary tract infections during active military service are granted as service connection.

The Board found that the Veteran's current skin cancer disability is not related to his active service, including exposure to Agent Orange or JP-4 jet fuel. As such, the claim for service connection was denied.

The Veteran's PTSD disability is currently rated at 50 percent, and the Board found that it does not meet the criteria for a higher rating based on the severity of his symptoms.

The Board found that the Veteran's Substantive Appeal was not timely filed and thus denied his appeal.