Other conditions decisions — 2020

The Board has determined that the Veteran's pension benefits were properly terminated for the period from February 1, 2008 to January 31, 2009 and reduced to $548 per month for the period from February 1, 2010 to January 31, 2011 due to unreported income.

The Board denied service connection for Peripheral Vascular Disease (PVD) as it was not incurred in or aggravated by service, and there is no evidence of herbicide exposure. The Veteran's claim was based on direct service connection.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's back disability, which included spondylolysis and Scheuermann’s Disease, existed prior to his active duty service. The evidence does not show any aggravation of these conditions during service, and thus, service connection is denied.

The Veteran's income exceeded the maximum annual pension rate, so he is not eligible for nonservice-connected pension.

The Board has granted an increase in the apportionment amount to 20 percent of the Veteran's VA disability benefits, which is within a reasonable range as per VA regulations.

The Veteran's spinal injury and nerve damage are not deemed to be caused by VA medical treatment, thus the claim for compensation under 38 U.S.C. § 1151 is denied.

The Board has determined that the AOJ's decision regarding the creation and validity of the Veteran's overpayment debt is flawed due to oversight in adjusting the amount based on certain components, and thus remands the case for further action.

The Veteran's overpayment of additional VA compensation benefits for his spouse was denied as the fault lay with him, and recovery would not be against equity and good conscience.

The Veteran's claim for payment of additional accrued benefits is being remanded due to procedural errors. The appellant needs to be determined as a proper party to substitute for the Veteran, and the merits of the SMP benefits claim for the one-year period prior to April 2017 on the basis of liberalized legislation will need to be adjudicated.

The Board has granted service connection for the cause of death effective November 13, 2015. The Appellant's claim was reopened and remanded multiple times before being granted in August 2019.

The Veteran's claim for an effective date prior to April 16, 2019 for the grant of special monthly compensation (SMC) based on loss of use of the left upper extremity is denied. The earliest possible effective date is April 16, 2019.

The Veteran's death was not service-connected, and therefore he did not meet the criteria for burial benefits. The claim is denied.

The Veteran's TDIU claim is remanded due to a failure to refer the matter to the Director of Compensation Service for consideration of an extraschedular TDIU award prior to February 4, 2019.

The Veteran's Crohn's disease rating was reduced from 60% to 0%, effective March 1, 2018. The Board has restored the 60% rating for Crohn's disease as it is determined that there was actual improvement in the disability level and an improvement in the ability to function under ordinary conditions of life and work.

The Board has remanded the case due to errors in processing Survivors Pension, Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC), and Accrued Benefits claims. The Appellant's representative submitted a mistakenly omitted section of her VA Form 21-534 Application for Dependency and Indemnity Compensation or Death Pension by a Surviving Spouse or Child, which contained her medical expense reports. However, the residential care facility was not provided with the necessary forms to complete them due to the COVID-19 epidemic.

The Board denied the Veteran's request for a waiver of overpayment of VA pension benefits due to his failure to file within the 180-day time limit, despite receiving notification of the overpayment and the deadline.

The Board has determined that the Veteran sustained dental trauma to teeth #2, #3, #12, #13, #19 and #20 during service. As this is a direct service connection case based on in-service injury, the claim for treatment purposes of these specific teeth was granted.

The Veteran's attorney withdrew the appeal regarding earlier effective dates for TDIU and DEA eligibility under 38 U.S.C. Chapter 35.

The Board has remanded the case for a new VA examination and opinion to determine if the Veteran's right eye disability is related to his service, including an incident during basic training where he was hit in the eye while firing an M-16 rifle.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's psoriatic arthritis is related to service and grants service connection for this condition.