The Board has granted service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death due to his service-connected degenerative disc disease of the lower back. The claim for DIC benefits is moot as a result. The earlier effective date claim for TDIU award resulting in accrued benefits was denied.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's severe spinal stenosis and degenerative disease of the lower back caused or contributed to his death, satisfying the criteria for service connection for the cause of death. His other conditions did not contribute substantially or materially to his death. The earlier effective date claim for TDIU award resulting in accrued benefits was denied as he met the requirements for a TDIU on a scheduler basis starting November 6, 2008.
- Claimed conditions
- degenerative disc disease of the lower back, bilateral pes planus, end-stage renal disease (ESRD), severe aortic stenosis
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- February 19, 2014
- Citation
- 1407077
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 1407077.
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Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Board denied the Appellant's requests for earlier effective dates for his service connection for bilateral pes planus and gynecomastia scar residuals, finding that the earliest possible effective dates are the dates of receipt of the claims.
- Denied
The Veteran's hypertension, bilateral pes planus, PTSD, and anxiety were all denied as service connection was not established based on the evidence of record.,Bilateral pes planus was denied due to lack of current diagnosis.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for treatment purposes only under Chapter 17 for various conditions, including cervical spine condition, right upper extremity nerve condition, left upper extremity nerve condition, headache condition, right wrist condition, left wrist condition, right elbow condition, left elbow condition, right shoulder condition, obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), bilateral pes planus, right ankle disorder, left ankle disorder, and left knee disorder.
- Denied
The Veteran's bilateral pes planus is rated at 30 percent, which does not meet the criteria for a higher rating. The Board denied his claim for a higher rating as his pes planus did not result in pronounced flatfoot with marked pronation, extreme tenderness of plantar surfaces of the feet, or marked inward displacement and severe spasm of the Achilles' tendon on manipulation. For TDIU, the Veteran was granted from March 2, 2019, based on his service-connected disabilities rendering him unable to obtain and follow a substantially gainful occupation.
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