Other conditions decisions — 2018

The Board has determined that the appellant is entitled to recognition as the Veteran's surviving spouse for purposes of establishing entitlement to VA death benefits, based on her marriage to the Veteran prior to his death and her continuous residence with him.

The Board of Veterans' Appeals has determined that the overpayment of VA special monthly pension was not properly created and is therefore granted. The net worth of the Appellant did not include the value of her irrevocable trust, which means she was not considered to have an excessive net worth for purposes of receiving pension benefits.

The Veteran's death was not due to a service-connected disability, and the appellant is not considered a qualifying child for DIC benefits. The claim was denied because it was filed outside of one year from the date of death.

The Veteran's spouse is denied an extension of the delimiting date for DEA spousal education benefits due to her failure to apply within one year after her disability terminated.

The Veteran's service-connected degenerative joint disease (arthritis) of the left hip with trochanteric bursitis is being remanded for further evaluation due to inadequate examination findings and missing VA treatment records.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for residuals of nail deformity and onychomycosis of the bilateral big toes is remanded due to insufficient evidence. A VA examination is needed to determine if these conditions are related to his military service.

The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for a 10% rating for the residuals of a fracture of the left first metatarsal was granted. The effective date is set at August 7, 2009.

The Veteran's death is the basis for DIC benefits, but since the Appellant and the Veteran were divorced at the time of his death, she cannot be considered a surviving spouse and therefore does not qualify for DIC.

The Board has granted service connection for Hodgkin's lymphoma due to in-service radiation exposure. The skin disorder issue is remanded for further development.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings for spondyarthralgia of the left and right feet have been denied as his conditions do not warrant a rating higher than 10 percent before May 31, 2016 or 20 percent since that date.

The Board has remanded the case for further development and medical opinion regarding the cause of the Veteran's death, specifically whether his pancreatic cancer is related to service due to presumed in-service herbicide exposure.

The Board found that the Appellant's discharges from her periods of active duty or ACDUTRA service were not under dishonorable conditions, thus allowing her to receive VA benefits.

The Veteran's cause of death was due to leukemia, a condition presumed service-connected. The Appellant is denied DIC benefits as she remarried after the age of 57 and remains married.

The Board found that the appellant's service was otherwise honest, faithful, and meritorious despite his minor offenses during military service. Therefore, his discharge from other than honorable conditions does not bar him from receiving VA benefits.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's service-connected conditions, including hypertension and atrioseptal defect repair with pericardial patch, contributed to his death from idiopathic supranuclear palsy. The decision is in favor of granting service connection for the cause of the Veteran’s death.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for anemia, blood chemical imbalance, and gastrointestinal problems is remanded due to the need for a VA examination.

The Board dismissed the claim for TDIU as it was granted in an August 2018 rating decision and is effective since November 1, 2016.

The appeal was dismissed due to the death of the appellant.

Your appeal for service connection for a skin disorder has been dismissed because the Veteran withdrew his claim.

The Board has restored the TDIU effective November 1, 2016, as the RO failed to consider and apply the provisions of 38 C.F.R. § 3.343(c) when discontinuing the TDIU.