Other conditions decisions — 2015

The Veteran's varicose veins of the left leg are currently rated as 10 percent disabling, with symptoms including aching and fatigue after prolonged standing or walking, which are relieved by elevation or compression hosiery.

The case is being remanded for further development to clarify the Veteran's service under the Loan Repayment Program (LRP) and whether his military service should be counted for Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits.

The Veteran's claim for payment or reimbursement of unauthorized medical expenses incurred at a private hospital is denied because the Veteran has coverage under Medicare, which paid for part of the treatment. As such, VA cannot pay for the remaining amount due to Capital Regional Medical Center.

The Board has remanded the case for a VA examination to address the etiology of any diagnoses of skin cancer or skin disabilities, specifically including actinic keratosis and skin lesions. The Veteran's claim is currently pending.

The Board finds that the Veteran reasonably discharged his responsibility to support his ex-wife, and she did not suffer a hardship during the appeal period. Therefore, an apportionment of the Veteran's VA disability compensation benefits is denied.

The Board finds that the evidence is at least in equipoise that the Veteran's genital warts began during service and are related to an in-service event, injury or disease. As such, the criteria for service connection have been met.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's death was caused by his oropharyngeal cancer, which is presumed to be related to herbicide exposure during service. The claim for service connection for the cause of death is granted.

The Veteran is seeking compensation under 38 U.S.C.A. § 1151 for a left eye disability resulting from VA surgeries, but the case must be remanded to obtain clarification on whether the complications during surgery contributed to his worsened vision and depth perception.

The Board has granted service connection for multiple systems atrophy on the basis of presumed exposure to burn pits during active duty.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for right foot arthritis and a compensable rating for status-post right foot fourth metatarsal fracture, finding no current disability of right foot arthritis and that the existing schedular evaluations adequately described his condition.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for angina is denied as there is no credible evidence of a current disability.

The Veteran's claims for service connection were denied because he failed to report for a VA medical examination scheduled in October 2014.

The Veteran is seeking compensation under the provisions of 38 U.S.C.A. § 1151 for residuals of a stroke, but additional development is needed to properly adjudicate this claim.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim of entitlement to service connection for gastric reflux, finding that there was no direct evidence linking his current condition to his military service. The VA examiner concluded that the Veteran's acid reflux did not originate in service and is not related to herbicide exposure.

The Board has remanded the case for additional development, including obtaining SSA records and providing proper notice of the substitution decision. The appellant is also encouraged to review her claims file and provide consent for release of any outstanding private treatment records.

The Veteran's functional cardiac murmur does not meet the criteria for a compensable rating under VA's schedular guidelines, as it does not cause workloads of greater than 7 METs but not greater than 10 METs that results in dyspnea, fatigue, angina, dizziness, or syncope. The Veteran was found to have no functional impairment from his murmur.

The Board has granted service connection for residuals of nose and sinus injury, including respiratory and breathing problems. The Veteran's scars have been rated as 10 percent disabling.

The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date of March 22, 2005 for a 20 percent evaluation for post transection, right lateral femoral cutaneous nerve is granted.

The Veteran's surviving spouse, who died in December 2010, had accrued benefits totaling $28,431. After paying $13,006.25 for final expenses, the appellant is not entitled to additional reimbursement as she does not qualify as a child and the expenses were paid from an account held jointly with her mother.

The appeal is being remanded due to scheduling issues for a non-service-connected death pension claim and the need to issue a statement of the case for service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death.