The Veteran's death was not proximately caused by VA treatment, and the appellant's DIC claim under 38 U.S.C. § 1151 is denied.,The appellant's request for increased VA death pension benefits is denied as her income exceeds the maximum annual pension rate (MAPR).,There are no accrued benefits due to the appellant as there were no claims pending at the time of the Veteran's death.
The deciding factor: VA treatment records show that the cause of the Veteran's death was chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and hypertension. The VA physician concluded that the Veteran's death was not proximately caused by VA care.,The appellant's income exceeded the maximum annual pension rate, preventing her from receiving increased VA death pension benefits.,There were no claims pending at the time of the Veteran's death, thus there are no accrued benefits due to the appellant.
- Claimed conditions
- Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, Hypertension
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 27, 2018
- Citation
- 1825225
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 1825225.
What this means for you
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What you can do next
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- Granted
The Board has restored the Veteran's 10% rating for hypertension effective December 1, 2025 and denied a rating in excess of 10%. The reduction from 10% to noncompensable was not proper.
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