Other conditions Board decisions

The Board has granted the appellant's appeal to be recognized as the surviving spouse of the Veteran for VA benefits purposes, given her continuous cohabitation with the Veteran and her belief that Maryland recognizes common law marriages.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings and an earlier effective date have been remanded due to the need for additional development.

The Veteran is entitled to reimbursement for medical expenses incurred during his emergency hospitalization at St. Anthony's Central Hospital from December 31, 2004, to January 3, 2005, as State Farm Insurance Company has already covered $5,000 of the costs.

The Veteran's claim for Dependency and Indemnity Compensation under 38 U.S.C.A. § 1151 has been dismissed due to the death of the appellant.

The Board found that the Veteran does not have residuals of a right hip injury and denied his claim. The issue of entitlement to service connection for a right arm/elbow condition is remanded.

The Board has remanded the case for additional development, including obtaining information about the Veteran's Reserve service and verifying his use of Chapter 34 educational benefits. The Veteran is also scheduled for a hearing before RO personnel.

The Veteran's death certificate shows he died in December 2007. The appellant filed a timely claim for accrued benefits by filing for dependency and indemnity compensation within one year of the Veteran's death. At the time of his death, the Veteran did not have any claims pending. Therefore, no benefits are payable.

The Veteran's atrial fibrillation with history of heart block pacemaker implant is currently rated at 60 percent, and the Board finds that this rating adequately reflects his disability level.

The Veteran's death was caused by squamous cell carcinoma of the oral cavity, which did not onset in service and is not related to service. The Board denied service connection for cause of death.

The Veteran's appeal for service connection for cancer of the oral cavity has been dismissed due to the death of the appellant.

The Veteran's appeal was dismissed due to the death of the claimant during the pendency of the appeal.

The Veteran's appeal for eligibility to VA educational benefits under Chapters 30 and 32 of Title 38, United States Code is denied due to the expiration of these programs.

The Board has reopened the appellant's claim for service connection for cause of death due to new and material evidence submitted since the final November 1986 rating decision. The Veteran committed suicide while on active duty, but there is no indication that he was of sound mind at the time. The Board finds that his death does not meet the criteria for willful misconduct or drug use resulting in service connection.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's service-connected acid peptic ulcer disease warrants a 30 percent disability rating, effective from February 10, 2009. The right orchiectomy is rated at 30 percent disabling.

The Board has denied the appellant's claim for an apportionment of the Veteran's VA compensation benefits due to the Veteran adequately discharging his duty to support her prior to their divorce, and she is not legally entitled to an apportionment following the divorce.

The Board has determined that there is no competent evidence linking the Veteran's current right foot injury and numbness to his military service, including any exposure during service. The claim for service connection is therefore denied.

The Board has determined that the evidence does not present new and material information to reopen the claim for non-service-connected disability pension benefits, as it is essentially duplicative of previous evidence. The appellant's service was only ACDUTRA from May 1960 to December 1960, which does not qualify him for disability pension benefits.

The Veteran's unauthorized medical expenses incurred at Capitol Regional Medical Center on April 25, 2009 for a right fourth toe contusion were denied as there was no evidence of a medical emergency and the VA facility in Tallahassee was feasibly available.

The Board has remanded the case for additional development and readjudication due to new evidence submitted by the Veteran.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for increased ratings for post-concussive syndrome and low back disorder, finding that the current evaluations adequately reflect the severity of his conditions.