The appeal was dismissed due to the veteran's death before a decision could be issued.
The deciding factor: The veteran died during the pendency of his appeal, and as a matter of law, veterans' claims do not survive their deaths.
- Claimed conditions
- hepatitis C, diabetes mellitus associated with herbicide exposure, diabetic retinopathy secondary to diabetes mellitus associated with herbicide exposure
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- Agent Orange / herbicides
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 22, 2008
- Citation
- 0816897
What this means for you
A dismissal means the Board did not decide the issue on its merits — usually because it was withdrawn or had become moot. It says more about procedure than about whether a claim like this can win.
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 hepatitis C, jaundice, hypogeusia, and hyposmia as there was no evidence of a current disability during the pendency of the claim.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board denied service connection for hepatitis C and remanded the claim for a heart disability due to insufficient evidence.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for hepatitis C, resolving reasonable doubt in the Veteran's favor.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the issue of entitlement to an initial compensable disability rating for service-connected hepatitis C due to an inadequate VA examination and medical opinions.
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This is general information, not legal advice. For advice about your own situation, talk to a VA-accredited representative — many help for free.