The Board denied DIC benefits because the decedent's death was not caused by a service-connected disability, and Alzheimer's disease is not considered related to military service.
The deciding factor: Alzheimer's disease was not shown to be related to the decedent's military service.
- Claimed conditions
- Alzheimer's disease
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- October 21, 2020
- Citation
- 20068130
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 837 · Granted: 24% (granted or partly granted, in the indexed 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. Read the original VA decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 20068130.
What this means for you
A final Board denial may be appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, generally within 120 days of the Board mailing date. A Supplemental Claim with new and relevant evidence is a separate option. Another Higher-Level Review of the Board decision is not available. Check your own notice: this historical decision does not set your deadline.
What you can do next
Use your own notice and decision stage. A remanded issue is not a final court-appealable denial. VA review guidance and CAVC filing instructions (U.S. federal; reviewed October 7, 2026).
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient medical opinions regarding whether the Veteran's service-connected anxiety disorder and exposures at Camp LeJeune contributed to his cause of death. The VA must obtain an addendum opinion addressing these issues.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the claims for service connection for prostate cancer, Alzheimer's disease, pseudophakia, spine tumor, and a heart condition due to potential errors in obtaining all relevant medical records and considering the Veteran's exposure to toxic environmental risk activities (TERA) during his military service.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, including PTSD and generalized anxiety disorder, as well as Alzheimer's disease. The evidence did not support a finding of a current disability or a causal link to service.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to a lack of VA medical opinion regarding the cause of death and failure to obtain SSA disability records.
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