The Board denied service connection for the cause of death and basic eligibility for non-service-connected death pension benefits due to lack of evidence linking the Veteran's death to his recognized service.
The deciding factor: The preponderance of the evidence is against a finding that the Veteran's death was caused by an illness or disease incurred in or aggravated by active military service, and he did not have qualifying service to be eligible for VA pension benefits.
- Claimed conditions
- rheumatic heart disease
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 17, 2009
- Citation
- 0909878
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.
- Partly granted
The veteran's claim for service connection for rheumatic heart disease was granted. The claim for hypertensive vascular disease was remanded.
- Granted
The Board has granted the Veteran's claim for total disability due to individual unemployability for the period prior to March 7, 2011 based on his service-connected rheumatic heart disease and left knee degenerative changes.
- Granted
The Veteran's service-connected rheumatic heart disease renders him unemployable and he is granted a total disability rating based on individual unemployability.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for a heart disorder, finding that there was no clear and unmistakable evidence of aggravation during service and that any non-rheumatic heart disease conditions did not manifest within one year of separation from service.
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