The Board denied the veteran's claim for special monthly pension for a surviving spouse based on the need for regular aid and attendance due to lack of recent medical records.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner did not have access to recent treatment records, which could provide more current information about the appellant's condition.
- Claimed conditions
- severe chronic bronchial asthma, right ankle calcaneal spurs, exogenous obesity
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 16, 2006
- Citation
- 0617620
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 0617620.
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 service connection for COPD, glaucoma, exogenous obesity, hypothyroidism, and hyperlipidemia each claimed to be secondary to diabetes mellitus.
- Dismissed
The Board has denied service connection for exogenous obesity and dismissed the secondary service connection claim for diabetes mellitus due to exogenous obesity as moot.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for obstructive sleep apnea, effective from the date of the February 2025 rating decision.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for a medical examination to determine if the Veteran's current neck strain is related to his in-service activities.
We are not the VA. Veterans’ Rights is an independent resource built for veterans. We are not the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, not part of the government, and not endorsed by any government agency.
This is general information, not legal advice. For advice about your own situation, talk to a VA-accredited representative — many help for free.