The Board denied the appellant's claims for service connection for the cause of the veteran's death, entitlement to VA dependency and indemnity compensation (DIC) under 38 U.S.C.A. § 1318, and eligibility for Dependents' Educational Assistance under 38 U.S.C. Chapter 35.
The deciding factor: The medical evidence failed to establish an etiological relationship between the veteran's sudden cardiac death or arteriosclerotic heart disease (ASHD) and active service; at the time of his death, no service-connected disability was in effect; and there was no clear and unmistakable error in a prior decision that would have resulted in compensation for a 100% rating due to a service-connected disability.
- Claimed conditions
- arteriosclerotic heart disease (ASHD), mitral insufficiency with a history of rheumatic fever
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 15, 2008
- Citation
- 0816061
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 952 · Granted: 17% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted 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. Look up the original decision on VA.gov (opens in a new tab) using citation 0816061.
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- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for further development due to a pre-decisional duty to assist error.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's death was not due to service-connected disability, and the appeal for DIC under 38 U.S.C. § 1310 is remanded as additional evidence is needed.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case for additional development regarding service connection for arteriosclerotic heart disease and bilateral hearing loss. The Veteran's claim for ASHD is denied as there is no evidence of a current disability related to his military service, while his claim for bilateral hearing loss requires an addendum opinion.
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