The Board denied entitlement to nonservice-connected death pension benefits and whether new and material evidence has been received to reopen a claim of service connection for the cause of the Veteran’s death. The Appellant's countable income exceeded the maximum annual income limit for pension benefits, and her statements did not establish that a service-connected disability caused or materially contributed to the Veteran’s death.
The deciding factor: The new evidence submitted by the Appellant does not relate to an unestablished fact necessary to substantiate the claim of service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death.
- Claimed conditions
- hypertensive heart disease, duodenal ulcer disease with chronic dyspepsia, left thigh scar, posttraumatic stress disorder, right ankle sprain
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 29, 2019
- Citation
- 19107022
What this means for you
A denial is a starting point, not the end of the road. You can see why this claim fell short — and, if you are still inside the one-year window, the appeal lanes that may remain open to you.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Partly granted
The Board granted a 20 percent rating for the service-connected right ankle sprain, but denied an increased rating in excess of 20 percent.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for a heart condition to obtain an addendum opinion from a VA clinician regarding whether the Veteran's current heart condition is related to service, including in-service treatment for hypertension.
- Dismissed
The appeal for a temporary total evaluation because of hospital treatment in excess of 21 days for service-connected posttraumatic stress disorder was withdrawn by the Veteran's representative and is therefore dismissed.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for multiple conditions, including a bilateral eye disability and cardiovascular conditions, based on the Veteran's in-service occupational exposures.
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