Other conditions decisions — 2019

The Board has remanded the Veteran's TDIU claim due to incomplete information provided by the Veteran and because referral to the Director of Compensation Service for extraschedular consideration was not completed.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's left ankle disorder claim should be remanded due to insufficient evidence regarding its etiology. The rating for his knee disabilities is also being remanded as there are no recent VA examinations addressing current functional impairment.

The Board has decided that the Veteran's recurrent ventral hernias may be related to his in-service injury, but more evidence is needed to determine this relationship.

The Board has decided that a new VA examination is needed to assess the current severity of the Veteran's service-connected bilateral photophobia.

The Board has decided to remand the case due to new evidence being added to the claims file since the December 2015 Statement of the Case, and the Veteran has elected for this additional evidence to be considered by the AOJ.

The Board denied compensation benefits for a right ear condition due to carelessness, negligence, lack of proper skill, error in judgment or other instance of fault on the part of VA. The Veteran's complications were not caused by such instances and were reasonably foreseeable.

The Board denied the claim of service connection for chronic myelomonocytic leukemia-1 (CMML) due to lack of evidence linking the condition to military service, including exposure to herbicide agents.

The Board dismissed the appeal due to the appellant's withdrawal of his appeal after receiving favorable rating decisions.

The Board dismissed the Veteran's appeal because he withdrew his appeal prior to a decision being made.

The Veteran's claims for service connection have been reopened due to the submission of new evidence. The cases are remanded for further examination and opinion regarding his left-hand, right-hand, and sinus conditions.

The Veteran's disability rating for esophagus stricture was reduced from 50% to 30%, effective March 21, 2013. The Board found that the reduction was not proper and restored the original 50% evaluation.

The Board dismissed the appeal as the Veteran was granted a waiver of recovery for the overpayment, making the validity of the debt moot.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for her child's dependency allowance, finding that she did not submit a written notice of J.L.'s birth to VA before January 26, 2016.

The Veteran's son, the appellant, is not eligible for accrued benefits as he does not meet the statutory definition of a 'child' and has not provided evidence that he paid for his mother's last sickness or burial expenses.

The Board has decided to remand the case due to insufficient evidence regarding the nature and etiology of the Veteran's squamous cell carcinoma, including whether it is related to his military service or exposure to herbicides. The VA must obtain an examination and opinion to address these issues.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claim for an initial disability rating in excess of 20 percent for his service-connected lumbago due to inadequate medical opinions addressing functional loss or additional loss due to flare-ups and repetitive use over time.

The overpayment of $696.60 for VA disability compensation benefits from January 2013 to June 2013 is denied, and the issue of whether the overpayment of $1,164.40 due to concurrent receipt of disability compensation and active service pay for her period of active duty from October 2010 to September 2011 was proper is remanded.

The Veteran's claim for recognition of her daughters, A. and K., as her dependents for VA purposes was granted effective November 1, 2010.

The Veteran's appeal for a higher initial rating for residuals of left thumb fracture was denied. The current disability is rated at 10 percent based on limitation of motion, with less than two inches between the thumb pad and the fingers.

The Board has decided to remand the case for further development regarding whether VA employees or contractors performed the right eye cataract surgery in October 2010, and to obtain an independent medical expert opinion on the cause of any additional right eye disability.