The Veteran's adult child, A.G., is not recognized as the helpless child due to a lack of medical evidence showing permanent incapacity for self-support prior to age 18. The AOJ must obtain Tricare records from 1997 to 2000 and any other relevant Department of Defense records.
The deciding factor: The record lacks medical evidence establishing A.G.'s permanent incapacity for self-support prior to the age of 18, which is required for recognition as a helpless child.
- Claimed conditions
- permanent incapacity for self-support
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 15, 2022
- Citation
- A22023023
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 A22023023.
What this means for you
A remand is not a loss. The Board sent the case back for more development — often a new exam or missing records — before making a final decision. Many remands later end in a grant, and the decision spells out exactly what the Board wanted to see.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's daughter, P., is claimed to be permanently incapable of self-support prior to her 18th birthday due to sickle cell disease. The Board has ordered a remand for the VA to obtain relevant medical records from SSA and PRISMA Health.
- Granted
The Veteran's child, M.H., is recognized as a helpless child for VA benefits purposes due to permanent incapacity for self-support prior to attaining age 18.
- Denied
The Veteran's son, G.J., was not found to be permanently incapable of self-support prior to turning 18 years old. The evidence showed he graduated high school and attended college until his 18th birthday.
- Denied
The Veteran's daughter, D.R., is not considered permanently incapable of self-support prior to her 18th birthday. Therefore, she does not qualify for additional dependency benefits.
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