The claim for service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death was denied due to lack of evidence linking prostate cancer to military service. The appellant is not entitled to nonservice-connected death pension benefits prior to August 30, 2015 as her income exceeded the maximum annual pension rate (MAPR). The claim for an earlier effective date for special monthly pension based on need for aid and attendance was denied because neither of the exceptions under VA regulations apply.
The deciding factor: The appellant's claim for service connection for the cause of the Veteran’s death was not reopened due to lack of new and material evidence. The income threshold for nonservice-connected death pension benefits exceeded the maximum annual pension rate (MAPR) prior to August 30, 2015.
- Claimed conditions
- prostate cancer
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- August 27, 2018
- Citation
- 18129590
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 18129590.
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Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for diabetes mellitus, prostate cancer, visual impairment, hypertension, and erectile dysfunction due to lack of exposure to herbicide agents during service. The Veteran's claims were not granted.
- Granted
The Veteran's claim for service connection for prostate cancer, bone cancer, and lymph node cancer has been granted. The prostate cancer is presumed due to herbicide agent exposure during service at RTAFB Takhli. Bone cancer is secondary to the service-connected prostate cancer. Lymph node cancer is also considered secondary to prostate cancer.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for diabetes mellitus, prostate cancer, ischemic heart disease, right lower extremity peripheral artery disease, left lower extremity peripheral artery disease, and hypertension as the evidence did not establish an in-service event or exposure to herbicide agents.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has granted service connection for prostate cancer but remanded the claim for PTSD due to insufficient verification of stressor incidents.
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