The appellant was the veteran's surviving spouse at the time of his death, but she remarried in 1987 and is therefore not eligible for VA benefits as a properly recognized surviving spouse.
The deciding factor: The appellant remarried after her husband's death, which bars her from being recognized as his surviving spouse for purposes of VA death benefits.
- Claimed conditions
- carcinoma of the stomach, liver, pancreas, esophagus, omentum
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 30, 2002
- Citation
- 0215291
This is a plain-language summary generated by AI from a public Board of Veterans’ Appeals decision. It can contain errors — always verify against the original. Look up the original decision on VA.gov (opens in a new tab) using citation 0215291.
What this means for you
A denial is a starting point, not the end of the road. You can see why this claim fell short — and, if you are still inside the one-year window, the appeal lanes that may remain open to you.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
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- Denied
The Veteran's cause of death was not related to his military service, and he did not meet the criteria for DIC under 38 U.S.C. § 1318.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection due to the need for additional development, including obtaining medical records and updating his military personnel file. The claims are being remanded for further examination and opinion regarding the nature and etiology of the claimed disabilities.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claim for payment or reimbursement of medical expenses at Robinson Memorial Hospital is remanded due to the need for additional development, including obtaining relevant scanned records from VA treatment records.
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