The Veteran's death was not due to a service-connected disability rated totally disabling for at least eight years prior, and the appellant did not meet other criteria for increased DIC benefits. The claim is denied.
The deciding factor: The Veteran died five years and eight months after being awarded total disability rating, which does not meet the requirement of being rated totally disabling for a continuous period of at least eight years immediately preceding death.
- Claimed conditions
- Agent Orange exposure, Heart attacks
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- Agent Orange / herbicides
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 13, 2024
- Citation
- 24032946
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 622 · 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 24032946.
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's initial claim was denied due to the lack of a clear statement regarding his claims. The Board finds that remand is necessary for clarification and completion of the application.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death, attributing it to Agent Orange exposure in service.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis (IPF) due to presumed exposure to Agent Orange in Vietnam.
- Denied
The Veteran's surviving spouse is denied additional accrued benefits as she has already been paid the amount due to her in full.
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