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Denied

The Veteran's death benefits for cause of death were granted, but the appellant did not meet the eligibility criteria for Dependents' Educational Assistance (DEA) benefits due to his age at the time of his father's death.

The deciding factor: The appellant was more than 26 years old when his father died, which is the delimiting date for DEA benefits. The claim cannot be granted as it does not meet the criteria specified under 38 U.S.C.A. § 5113(b) for retroactive benefits.

Claimed conditions
Not specified in this decision
How they argued it
Not specified
Exposure basis
None
Rating assigned
None in this decision
Decision date
January 15, 2014
Citation
1402166

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 1402166.

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