The veteran was not rated totally disabled for at least eight years prior to his death, thus the appellant's claim for additional DIC benefits under 38 U.S.C.A. § 1311(a)(2) is denied.
The deciding factor: The veteran did not meet the statutory duration requirements for a total disability rating at the time of his death due to service-connected conditions.
- Claimed conditions
- Generalized arteriosclerosis, Myocardial infarction, Hypertensive cardiovascular disease, Cirrhosis
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 0%
- Decision date
- June 7, 2004
- Citation
- 0414661
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 292 · Granted: 21% (granted or partly granted, in the indexed decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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. Search VA.gov for the original decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 0414661.
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.
- Denied
The Board denied the claim of service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death, finding that there was no evidence linking his myocardial infarction and COPD to his military service.
- Denied
The Board denied the claim for service connection for cause of death, finding that there is no evidence to support a causal relationship between the Veteran's military service and his death from gastrointestinal bleeding and hypertensive cardiovascular disease.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for ischemic heart disease and myocardial infarction, status post stent placement, as well as obstructive sleep apnea, finding that the Veteran's current conditions are related to his military service.
- Granted
The Board has granted the appellant's claim for service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death, finding that his opioid use disorder was related to his service-connected disabilities and led to his untimely death.
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