The Board denied the appellant's claim for DIC benefits under 38 U.S.C. § 1318 because the veteran did not meet the requirement of having a total service-connected disability rating for at least ten years prior to his death.
The deciding factor: The effective date for the grant of TDIU was fixed as June 17, 1999, which is less than 10 years prior to the veteran's death and thus does not meet the requirement under 38 U.S.C. § 1318.
- Claimed conditions
- chronic lumbosacral strain with degenerative disc/joint disease, generalized anxiety disorder
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 60%
- Decision date
- September 29, 2006
- Citation
- 0630632
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 0630632.
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The appeal is remanded to correct pre-decisional duty to assist errors, including the failure to obtain relevant treatment records and provide adequate VA examinations.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for various conditions, including left foot condition, right foot condition, cellulitis, right ear hearing loss, and right lower extremity radiculopathy. The appeal of the proposal to reduce a 40 percent evaluation for lumbosacral strain was dismissed.
- Partly granted
The Board granted an initial rating of 70 percent for the Veteran's service-connected depressive disorder due to another medical condition with depressive features and generalized anxiety disorder, denied a higher rating for his migraine including migraine variants, and denied ratings for other conditions.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for generalized anxiety disorder and denied service connection for a lower back disorder. The claims for depression, substance abuse disorder, and a compensable initial rating for bilateral hearing loss were dismissed.
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