Citation Nr: 21069255 Decision Date: 11/18/21 Archive Date: 11/18/21 DOCKET NO. 14-23 109 DATE: November 18, 2021 ORDER Entitlement to service connection for a bilateral leg disability, to include blocked arteries, is dismissed. Entitlement to service connection for a heart disorder, to include as secondary to service-connected right inguinal hernia, is dismissed. Entitlement to service connection for a left inguinal hernia, to include as secondary to service-connected right inguinal hernia, is dismissed. Entitlement to service connection for post aortofemoral bypass residuals, to include as secondary to service-connected right inguinal hernia, is dismissed. Entitlement to an increased disability rating in excess of 10 percent for right inguinal hernia, status post repair with scar with symptoms suggestive of recurrence, is dismissed. Entitlement to a total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU) is dismissed. FINDING OF FACT On September 27, 2021, the Board of Veterans' Appeals (Board) was notified (as confirmed by the Social Security Administration on November 5, 2021) that the Veteran died in September 2021. CONCLUSION OF LAW Due to the death of the Veteran, the Board has no jurisdiction to adjudicate the merits of this appeal at this time. 38 U.S.C. § 7104(a); 38 C.F.R. § 20.1302. REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDING AND CONCLUSION The Veteran had active duty service in the United States Army from October 1969 to July 1977. This matter comes to the Board of Veterans' Appeals (Board) on appeal from rating decisions dated in March 2011 and August 2013. In decisions dated in September 2016 and November 2018, the Board remanded the case to the Agency of Original Jurisdiction (AOJ) for additional development and adjudication. The case has since been returned to the Board for appellate review. In August 2015, the Veteran testified at a Board hearing before the undersigned Veterans Law Judge. A transcript from that proceeding is associated with the claims file. In addition to the issues listed above, the Board's November 2018 remand included the issue of entitlement to service connection for a psychiatric disability, to include as secondary to service-connected right inguinal hernia, claimed as posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), adjustment disorder, and depression. During the pendency of the remand, the AOJ issued a July 2021 rating decision that granted entitlement to service connection for PTSD. The grant of service connection for this disability constitutes a full award of the benefits sought on appeal. See Grantham v. Brown, 114 F. 3d 1156, 1158 (Fed. Cir. 1997). Thus, that issue is no longer before the Board. Unfortunately, the Veteran died during the pendency of this appeal. As a matter of law, appellants' claims do not survive their deaths. Therefore, this appeal must be dismissed for lack of jurisdiction. 38 U.S.C. § 7104(a); 38 C.F.R. § 20.1302. There are, however, provisions in place to allow for an eligible person to take the Veteran's place in his appeal in order to get a final decision. This process is called substitution. The request to be substituted must be filed within one year of the Veteran's death. 38 C.F.R. § 3.1010(b). To file a request for substitution, you may use VA Form 21P-0847, "Request for Substitution of Claimant Upon Death of Claimant," which can be found online here: https://www.vba.va.gov/pubs/forms/VBA-21P-0847-ARE.pdf. The completed form may be submitted electronically via ACCESSVA. The web address for ACCESSVA is https://eauth.va.gov/accessva/?cspSelectFor=dmhs. Alternatively, you may mail the completed form to: Department of Veterans Affairs Pension Intake Center PO Box 5365 Janesville, WI 53547-5365 You may also submit the form directly to your nearest VA regional office. To find a VA regional office nearest you go to https://www.va.gov/find-locations/?facilityType=benefits. Please note that only certain persons are eligible for substitution. A person eligible for substitution includes "a living person who would be eligible to receive accrued benefits due to the claimant under section 5121(a) of this title...." 38 U.S.C. § 5121A; 38 C.F.R. § 3.1010(a). There is a helpful factsheet that explains who is eligible for accrued benefits here: https://benefits.va.gov/BENEFITS/factsheets/general/Accrued.pdf GAYLE STROMMEN Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans' Appeals Attorney for the Board K.C. Spragins, Counsel The Board's decision in this case is binding only with respect to the instant matter decided. This decision is not precedential and does not establish VA policies or interpretations of general applicability. 38 C.F.R. § 20.1303.