Citation Nr: 18155737
Decision Date: 12/06/18	Archive Date: 12/04/18

DOCKET NO. 15-09 118
DATE:	December 6, 2018
REMANDED
Entitlement to dependency and indemnity compensation (DIC) as the helpless child of the veteran on the basis of permanent incapacity for self-support prior to attaining the age of 18 is remanded.
REASONS FOR REMAND
The Veteran had active service in the United States Army from August 1969 to September 1973.  The Veteran died in March 2013, and the appellant is the Veteran’s son.
This matter comes to the Board of Veterans’ Appeals (Board) on appeal from a July 2014 rating decision.
1.  Entitlement to DIC as the helpless child of the veteran on the basis of permanent incapacity for self-support prior to attaining the age of 18 is remanded.
After the Veteran died in March 2013, an October 2013 rating decision granted entitlement to service connection for the cause of the Veteran’s death.  In May 2014, the appellant filed a claim for entitlement to DIC benefits.  Survivor benefits may be awarded to a veteran's surviving spouse, children, and parents when the veteran dies as a result of service-connected or compensable disability.  See 38 U.S.C. § 1310.  For VA purposes, the term "child" includes an unmarried person, who is under the age of 18 years or became permanently incapable of self-support before reaching the age of 18 years.  38 U.S.C. § 101(4); 38 C.F.R. § 3.57(a).  
The appellant contends that he is entitled to recognition as the "helpless child" of the deceased Veteran on the basis of permanent incapacity for self-support prior to attaining age 18.  In this case, a June 2002 letter from the Social Security Administration (SSA) states that the appellant was awarded SSA disability benefits.  However, the record does not reflect that the AOJ has attempted to obtain the records associated with this determination.  As it is unclear whether the appellant was permanently incapable of self-support by reason of mental or physical disability at the time of his eighteenth birthday, these records are potentially relevant to the appellant’s claim and should be obtained on remand.  See Murincsak v. Derwinski, 2 Vet. App. 363 (1992); Golz v. Shinseki, 590 F.3d 1317 (Fed. Cir. 2010).
The matter is REMANDED for the following action:
1.  The AOJ should request that the appellant provide the names and addresses of any and all health care providers who have provided treatment relevant to his claim for entitlement to DIC benefits based on helpless child status.
After acquiring this information and obtaining any necessary authorization, the AOJ should obtain and associate these records with the claims file.
2.  The AOJ should obtain a copy of any decision to grant or deny SSA benefits to the appellant and the records upon which that decision was based and associate them with the claims file. 
If the search for such records has negative results, the claims file should be properly documented as to the unavailability of those records.
 
GAYLE STROMMEN
Veterans Law Judge
Board of Veterans’ Appeals
ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD	K.C. Spragins, Associate Counsel