Citation Nr: 21069406 Decision Date: 11/18/21 Archive Date: 11/18/21 DOCKET NO. 19-22 404 DATE: November 18, 2021 ORDER Entitlement to special monthly compensation (SMC) based on anatomical loss of both feet is granted. FINDING OF FACT The evidence is approximately evenly balanced as to whether the Veteran's amputation of both feet was the result of a service-connected disability. CONCLUSION OF LAW With reasonable doubt resolved in favor of the Veteran, the criteria for SMC due to anatomical loss of both feet have been met. 38 U.S.C. §§ 1114(l), 5107; 38 C.F.R. § 3.350. REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDING AND CONCLUSION The Veteran had active duty from July 1983 to January 1988. This matter comes before the Board of Veterans' Appeals (Board) from a November 2018 rating decision of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO). In November 2021, the Veteran testified at a video conference hearing before the undersigned Veterans Law Judge (VLJ). A transcript of the proceeding will be associated with the record. As the issue on appeal is being granted, the Board finds no prejudice will result from the adjudication of his claim in this Board decision. The Board acknowledges that the Veteran originally claimed SMC based on aid and attendance, but the benefits of special monthly compensation based on loss of anatomical loss of both feet is payable at the same rates as SMC based on aid and attendance. Therefore, the Board finds no harm to the Veteran in recharacterizing the issue. See 38 U.S.C. § 1114(l). 1. Entitlement to special monthly compensation SMC is payable at the aid and attendance rate to a veteran who, as a result of service-connected disability, as suffered the anatomical loss or loss of use of both feet or one hand and one foot, blindness in both eyes with visual acuity of 5/200 or less, or is permanently bedridden or with such significant disabilities as to be in need of regular aid and attendance. 38 U.S.C. § 1114(l). Upon review of the record, the Board finds the criteria for establishing entitlement to SMC due to anatomical loss of both feet have been met. 38 U.S.C. § 1114(l). The Veteran had below the right knee amputation in August 2018. He had below the left knee amputation in July 2019. The question becomes whether his amputations are due to service-connected disabilities. The claims file includes an opinion in favor and against the Veteran's claim. A September 2019 opinion by a VA physician notes that the Veteran's below the below the right and left knee amputations were caused by foot ulcers/wounds that progressed to wet gangrene and osteomyelitis. The cause of these chronic foot ulcers was peripheral vascular disease caused by Diabetes Mellitus, type II. In an August 2021 letter, the Veteran's physician explained that the Veteran had a bilateral foot condition called tinea pedis as well as peripheral vascular disease. The physician opined that these two conditions along with others have contributed to his right below the knee amputation and left below the knee amputation. The Veteran is entitled to the "benefit of the doubt" when there is an approximate balance of positive and negative evidence. 38 U.S.C. § 5107 (b); Gilbert v. Derwinski, 1 Vet. App. 49, 53-56 (1990). Accordingly, in resolving all doubt in the Veteran's favor, the Board concludes that the Veteran's bilateral below the knee amputations were the result, in part, of his service-connected tinea pedis. As such, the claim for entitlement to SMC due to anatomical loss of both feet is granted. KRISTI L. GUNN Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans' Appeals Attorney for the Board Tahirih S. Samadani, 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.