The Board denied the claim for an earlier effective date than March 14, 2017 for the grant of Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC) on the basis of service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death due to non-Hodgkin's lymphoma caused by exposure at Camp Lejeune. The effective date is set based on the liberalizing law that added non-Hodgkin's lymphoma as a presumptive condition.
The deciding factor: The effective date cannot be earlier than the effective date of the liberalizing law, which in this case is March 14, 2017.
- Claimed conditions
- Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma
- How they argued it
- Presumptive (no nexus needed)
- Exposure basis
- Camp Lejeune water
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- July 1, 2020
- Citation
- 20044351
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 20044351.
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.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for non-Hodgkin's lymphoma on a presumptive basis under the PACT Act, effective March 2, 2017.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for back pain and neck pain, finding no current disability. The claim for Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma is remanded due to inadequate consideration of all potential exposures.,The claim for an acquired psychiatric disability (PTSD) is also remanded due to a lack of development of the Veteran's therapist's records.
- Granted
The Veteran's claim for service connection for non-Hodgkin's lymphoma was granted with an effective date of March 13, 2024. This decision is based on the PACT Act becoming effective and the Veteran's symptoms being consistent with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma since April 14, 2022.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's request for an earlier effective date for service connection of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, finding that the claim was filed within one year of separation from active duty and therefore the earliest possible effective date is October 15, 2020.
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