The Board has determined that the Veteran was in need of regular aid and attendance due to his service-connected disabilities, including acute myeloid leukemia, spinal stenosis, lumbar radiculopathy, right knee osteoarthritis, and ulcerative colitis. As a result, SMC based on aid and attendance for accrued benefits purposes has been granted.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's need for regular aid and attendance was established through the appellant's testimony and medical records indicating his severe disability and inability to care for himself during chemotherapy treatment.
- Claimed conditions
- Acute myeloid leukemia, Spinal stenosis of the lumbar spine (secondary to degenerative disc disease), Lumbar radiculopathy of the left and right lower extremities, Right knee osteoarthritis, Ulcerative colitis
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 10, 2019
- Citation
- 19192480
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 882 · Granted: 17% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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 19192480.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Veteran's claim for a higher rating for right knee instability is granted, with a 30 percent rating. The claims for increased ratings for right knee osteoarthritis (flexion) and left hip strain, osteoarthritis and bursitis based on painful motion are denied. The claim for an increased rating for right ankle osteoarthritis is also denied.
- Granted
The Veteran's acute myeloid leukemia is granted as service-connected for the purposes of accrued benefits, and his cause of death due to this condition is also granted.
- Granted
The Board has determined that the Veteran's right knee condition is etiologically related to service and grants service connection for this disability.
- Granted
The Veteran's acute myeloid leukemia is granted as a result of herbicide exposure during his service in Vietnam.
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