The appellant is not entitled to higher DIC rate for a surviving spouse with dependent children as the effective date of her DIC award does not meet the legal requirements.
The deciding factor: The effective date of the appellant's DIC award was April 18, 1999, which did not align with the claim filed in May 1959 and subsequent denial by the RO and Board. The law does not provide for a higher rate of DIC to be paid to a surviving spouse for children over age 18.
- Claimed conditions
- Not specified in this decision
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 5, 2006
- Citation
- 0609871
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
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