Other conditions decisions — 2019

The appeal was dismissed due to the appellant's death.

The Board denied the appellant's claim to be recognized as the surviving spouse of the Veteran due to a lack of continuous cohabitation prior to his death, despite their legal marriage.

The Veteran's cause of death, metastatic colon cancer, is not service-connected as it was not caused by or aggravated by his service-connected conditions. The Board found that the Veteran's service-connected disabilities did not contribute to his death.

The Board denied a request for an effective date prior to January 1, 2013, for the addition of the Veteran's spouse as his dependent on VA disability compensation. The decision was based on the fact that the Veteran did not provide sufficient information regarding his marital history within one year of receiving notification from VA.

The Veteran's Post-9/11 GI Bill education benefits were exhausted after 36 months, and he is not entitled to additional benefits as his entitlement was based on the maximum amount available.

The Board denied the Appellant's claim for nonservice-connected death pension because her annual countable income exceeded the maximum allowed pension rate (MAPR). The preponderance of evidence showed that her income was $8,261 or more per year, which is above the MAPR.

The Board has determined that the overpayment of VA death pension benefits in the amount of $8,705 is valid from May 1, 2013 to April 30, 2014. The overpayment for the month of May 2014 was not valid as she received less than the MAPR.

The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for the dependency allowance for his current spouse was denied because he did not provide notice of his new marital status within a year after remarrying in March 2005.

The Veteran's glioblastoma multiforme is related to his presumed exposure to herbicides during his Vietnam service. The case is remanded for further development and an opinion from a clinician regarding the relationship between the glioblastoma multiforme and the Veteran’s active duty service.

The Board has granted service connection for non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, myelodysplastic syndrome, and leukemia due to exposure to contaminated water at Camp Lejeune. The conditions are presumed to have been incurred in service.

The Board has decided to remand the case for further readjudication, specifically focusing on determining if there should be an increase in the Veteran's accrued benefits based on medical expenses from March 26, 2012 through December 31, 2013. The appellant is recognized as the executrix of the Veteran’s estate and her itemized list of medical expenses (receipt date June 23, 2014) should be deemed credible.

The Veteran's appeal involves the creation and waiver of an overpayment of VA improved pension benefits in the amount of $13,635.40. The case is being remanded to address whether this overpayment was properly created.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for a compensable disability rating for ingrown toenails of both feet due to incomplete documentation and outstanding treatment records.

The appellant is not recognized as the Veteran's surviving spouse for VA benefits purposes due to her divorce from the Veteran at the time of his death.

The Veteran's appeal for payment or reimbursement of unauthorized medical expenses incurred during a non-VA hospitalization has been dismissed as the appellant withdrew his appeal.

The Veteran's residuals of pneumonia are not manifested by either a forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV-1) or by a ratio of FEV-1 to forced vital capacity (FVC) of 56 to 70 of that predicted, and thus the claim for a higher rating is denied.

The Board found that the reduction of the Veteran's pension benefits from February 1, 2010 to January 1, 2014 was warranted due to his spouse's unreported income. The appeal is denied as a matter of law.

The Board denied a rating in excess of 10 percent for the Veteran's service-connected right foot disability and also denied an extraschedular evaluation. The evidence showed moderate impairment, but not moderately severe or severe.

The Board has granted the Veteran's application to reopen his claim for service connection for CIDP, but denied the claim itself due to lack of evidence linking it to service or Agent Orange exposure.

The Board has remanded the case due to incomplete records and a need to determine if the Appellant's discharge under other than honorable conditions is a bar to VA home loan guaranty benefits.