The Board denied the claim for dependency and indemnity compensation (DIC) under 38 U.S.C. § 1151, as it was not shown that the Veteran's death resulted from carelessness, negligence, lack of proper skill, error in judgment, or similar instance of fault on VA's part in furnishing medical treatment, or an event not reasonably foreseeable.
The deciding factor: The weight gain experienced by the Veteran in the last month of his life contributed to causing his death and was due (at least in part) to the steroids that he was taking for his gout. However, it is less likely than not that the prednisone treatment related weight gain was the result of carelessness, negligence, lack of proper skill, error in judgment or similar instance of fault on VA's part.
- Claimed conditions
- Coronary artery disease (CAD), Gout, Pneumonia
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 4, 2009
- Citation
- 0908046
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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