The Board denied an earlier effective date for the grant of service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death, finding that January 22, 2009 is the earliest possible effective date due to lack of unadjudicated formal petitions to reopen the claim subsequent to the August 2006 decision and prior to January 22, 2009.
The deciding factor: The Board found that no unadjudicated formal petition to reopen the claim for service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death was submitted by W.S. after the August 2006 decision and before January 22, 2009, which is considered the earliest possible effective date.
- Claimed conditions
- Cause of Death
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- June 25, 2015
- Citation
- 1527282
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. Search VA.gov for the original decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 1527282.
What this means for you
A final Board denial may be appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, generally within 120 days of the Board mailing date. A Supplemental Claim with new and relevant evidence is a separate option. Another Higher-Level Review of the Board decision is not available. Check your own notice: this historical decision does not set your deadline.
What you can do next
Use your own notice and decision stage. A remanded issue is not a final court-appealable denial. VA review guidance and CAVC filing instructions (U.S. federal; reviewed October 7, 2026).
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection for cause of death and diabetes mellitus, type I to ensure complete service records are associated with the claims folder and to obtain necessary medical opinions.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims of service connection for AML and cause of death due to insufficient medical opinion regarding potential Agent Orange exposure. The AOJ will consider any new evidence submitted after the April 2024 decision.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the case for a new supplemental statement of the case (SSOC) due to additional evidence received after the most recent SSOC. The appellant is seeking an earlier effective date for service connection for cause of death.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to uncertainty about the Veteran's exposure to herbicide agents, specifically in Guam. Additional development is needed to determine if the USS Enterprise was within 12 nautical miles of Guam or its territorial waters during the Veteran's service.
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