The Veteran's cause of death, end stage dementia, is causally related to his service-connected bipolar disorder. As a result, the claim for DIC benefits under 38 U.S.C. § 1318 is dismissed as moot.
The deciding factor: Service connection was granted for the cause of the Veteran's death under direct service connection criteria.
- Claimed conditions
- bipolar disorder with recurrent episodes of depression and mania, end stage dementia
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 21, 2022
- Citation
- 22035805
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 22035805.
What this means for you
A dismissal means the Board did not decide the issue on its merits — usually because it was withdrawn or had become moot. It says more about procedure than about whether a claim like this can win.
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 the cause of the Veteran's death, as there was no evidence linking his conditions to his active-duty service.
- Denied
The Veteran's cause of death, likely sepsis with underlying causes of decubitus ulcers and end stage dementia, was not caused or contributed to by any service-connected disability. The Board found no evidence linking the Veteran's disabilities to his active service.
- Denied
The Veteran died of cardiac arrest due to acute myocardial infarction with kidney failure and end stage dementia. The Board found no evidence linking the cause of death to his military service, thus denying service connection for the cause of death.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient evidence regarding the cause of the Veteran's death and DIC benefits under 38 U.S.C. § 1318.
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