The Board denied the appellant's request for an earlier effective date for the grant of service connection for the cause of her husband's death, finding that December 4, 2017 is the proper effective date based on a reopened claim. The Veteran died in June 2007 and was not previously service-connected for any of the causes of his death.
The deciding factor: The Board found that the appellant did not submit new and material evidence before the finality of previous rating decisions, nor were there unconsidered service records prior to December 4, 2017. The effective date cannot be earlier than the date of receipt of the application to reopen.
- Claimed conditions
- intracerebellar hemorrhage, brainstem herniation, coagulopathy, thrombocytopenia, liver disease, alcohol use, hepatitis C, acute renal failure, cholelithiasis
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 11, 2019
- Citation
- 19144969
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.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for hepatitis C, jaundice, hypogeusia, and hyposmia as there was no evidence of a current disability during the pendency of the claim.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board denied service connection for hepatitis C and remanded the claim for a heart disability due to insufficient evidence.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for hepatitis C, resolving reasonable doubt in the Veteran's favor.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for squamous cell carcinoma of the scalp, chronic kidney disease, and liver disease, subject to regulations governing payment of monetary benefits.
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