The appellant is not recognized as the surviving spouse for VA death benefits purposes, and her claims for service connection for cause of death and DIC under 38 U.S.C.A. § 1318 are denied.
The deciding factor: The evidence does not establish that the appellant lived continuously with the Veteran from the date of their marriage to his death, as separation was acknowledged due to the nature of the Veteran's employment and other reasons not attributable to fault on her part.
- Claimed conditions
- Degenerative disc disease of the cervical spine, Radiculopathy and spondylosis, Degenerative arthritis affecting left and right hips, Residuals of shell fragment wound, right hand, arm, and trigger finger, Residuals of a fracture to left 5th finger, Residuals of fracture to right navicular foot, Excision of sebaceous cyst, Fractured mandible
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 16, 2009
- Citation
- 0922737
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 0922737.
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.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for degenerative disc disease of the cervical spine, finding that there is no nexus between the current disability and active duty service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for service connection due to a duty to assist error, specifically regarding whether the Veteran's current conditions are aggravated by his service-connected DDD of the lumbosacral spine. The AOJ is required to obtain new medical opinions addressing this issue.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claims for increased ratings for cervical and lumbar spine disabilities prior to October 22, 2008 are being remanded due to the need for additional retrospective medical opinions.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection of degenerative disc disease of the cervical spine, finding that the evidence did not support a link between the condition and service.
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