Other conditions decisions — 2022

The Board has remanded the case due to incomplete military personnel records and the need for an addendum medical opinion regarding the appellant's mental state during service.

The Board has granted service connection for the Veteran's skin disability and denied his claim for a total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU). The skin disability is related to active military service. However, the evidence does not show that the Veteran's service-connected disabilities render him unable to secure or follow substantially gainful employment.

The appeal was dismissed due to the appellant's death, and no final decision can be made.

The Veteran's appeals for increased disability ratings for chondromalacia of the right and left knees have been dismissed due to their death.

The Board has granted an apportionment of the Veteran's VA benefits to the appellant in the amount of additional benefits he receives for her as a dependent until the Veteran removes her from his VA benefits. The appeal is not about service connection.

The Veteran's appeal was dismissed because he withdrew his appeal for the issues of increased evaluation and service connection.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for left and right hand and fingers are being remanded due to the need for a new VA examination. The claims have been reopened, but further evaluation is needed to determine if there is a relationship between current conditions and service.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection for bladder disorder and prostate disorder, both linked to contaminated water at Camp Lejeune. The VA will obtain all relevant medical records and provide addendum opinions from qualified medical professionals.

The Veteran's breast cancer is granted as service connected due to exposure to contaminated water at Camp Lejeune during his military service.

The appellant is denied recognition as the surviving spouse of the Veteran for purposes of eligibility for VA death pension benefits because she divorced the Veteran many years before his death and did not remarry him or cohabitate with him afterward.

The Board has remanded the claims of service connection for right-hand and left-hand disorders due to outstanding private medical records that need to be obtained.

The Board has granted recognition as the surviving spouse for purposes of VA death benefits, based on the appellant's continuous cohabitation with the Veteran from their divorce in 2014 until his death in 2016 and her lack of knowledge about Missouri not recognizing common law marriages.

The Veteran's appeal is remanded to obtain additional medical records and an addendum opinion regarding the cause of his left leg numbness, foot drop, and hip replacement following a total left knee replacement surgery.

The Veteran's claim to recognize his deceased spouse, M., as a dependent for VA purposes was denied because the claim was submitted after her death and additional compensation is not paid posthumously.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for a right elbow/arm disability has been reopened, but the Board has determined that additional evidence is needed to determine if his current condition is related to his active service. The Veteran underwent an examination and will need to provide more information about his medical history.

The Board has remanded the claim for a total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU) due to service-connected disabilities. The Veteran was not provided with a completed VA Form 21-8940, and his employment history needs to be updated. Additionally, the TDIU claim will be referred to the Director of Compensation Service for consideration of an extraschedular TDIU if applicable.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for residuals of an incised cyst on his chin, finding that there is no current disability and insufficient evidence to establish a nexus between any past or present condition and service.

The Veteran withdrew her claim regarding the overpayment of VA dependency benefits, and the Board dismissed it as a result.

The Veteran's appeal for payment of non-VA medical services provided by Oregon Rescue 68 EMS Ambulance dispatch has been dismissed due to the death of the Veteran.

The Veteran's appeal is remanded for a retrospective examination to determine the level of functional impairment resulting from his service-connected grade 1 transitional cell carcinoma of the bladder, status post tumor resection, throughout the appeal period based on the effective date of service connection for the disability on February 8, 2005. The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date is denied.