Citation Nr: 21014285 Decision Date: 03/11/21 Archive Date: 03/11/21 DOCKET NO. 14-40 727 DATE: March 11, 2021 ORDER Entitlement to restoration of special monthly compensation (SMC) based on housebound criteria is denied. FINDING OF FACT The Veteran has not had a single service-connected disability rated as 100 percent since October 1, 2013 CONCLUSION OF LAW Since October 1, 2013, the criteria for SMC based on housebound criteria have not been met. 38 U.S.C. § 1114(s); 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.350(i). REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDING AND CONCLUSION The Veteran served on active duty from February 1967 to February 1969. This matter comes before the Board of Veterans’ Appeals (Board) on appeal from a July 2013 rating decision by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO) in Waco, Texas. The July 2013 rating decision discontinued the Veteran’s SMC based on housebound status effective October 1, 2013. The discontinuance was due to an error in coding a December 2012 rating decision, which awarded SMC from June 14, 2006 to October 1, 2006 based on a temporary evaluation for coronary artery disease. The Veteran perfected an appeal to the Board. This matter was previously before the Board in April 2018 and April 2020, wherein the Board remanded for additional development, to include scheduling the Veteran for VA examinations and obtaining medical records. After substantial compliance with the remand orders, the matter has returned to the Board for adjudication. It should be noted that there are other forms of SMC for which the Veteran has applied and may be eligible. However, the matter before the Board is limited to SMC based on housebound status, as it was the discontinuance of this benefit that the Veteran appeal. Special Monthly Compensation Based on Housebound Criteria The Veteran contends that the discontinuance of SMC based on housebound status on October 1, 2013, was improper because he was still housebound. SMC at the housebound rate is payable if a Veteran has a single service-connected disability rated at 100 percent and either (1) an additional service-connected disability or disabilities independently ratable at 60 percent separate and distinct from the 100 percent service-connected disability and involving different anatomical segments or bodily systems; or (2) is permanently housebound by reason of service-connected disabilities or disabilities. 38 U.S.C. § 1114(s); 38 C.F.R. § 3.350(i). A total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU) based on a single disability is permitted to satisfy the statutory requirement of a 100 percent rating. Bradley v. Peake, 22 Vet. App. 280, 293 (2008). Whether the Veteran has a single disability rated at 100 percent is the determinative fact in this matter. As of October 1, 2013, the Veteran was service connected for coronary artery disease at 60 percent, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) at 50 percent; blindness in the right eye at 30 percent; residuals of a gunshot wound left leg at 20 percent, residuals of a gunshot wound in the left thigh at 10 percent, and residuals of a gunshot wound in the left shoulder, left hand, and face at a noncompensable rate. At no time since October 1, 2013, has the any of the Veteran’s single service-connected disabilities been schedularly rated at 100 percent. However, the Veteran has been awarded a TDIU. Thus, this discussion must focus on whether any of his service-connected, alone, would support the TDIU. TDIU may be assigned, where the schedular rating is less than total, when the veteran is unable to secure or follow substantially gainful occupation as a result of service-connected disabilities. 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.340, 3.341, 4.16. In order to meet the schedular criteria for entitlement based on a singular disability, it must be rated at 60 percent or more. 38 C.F.R. § 4.16(a). Even if the schedular criteria is not met, the it is the established policy of VA that all veterans who are unable to secure and follow a substantially gainful occupation by reason of service-connected disability shall be rated totally disabled. 38 C.F.R. § 4.16(b). The only service-connected disability the Veteran has that meets the schedular criteria for a TDIU, is coronary artery disease. At a July 2019 examination, the Veteran denied any physical symptoms related to his heart condition. He further noted no additional symptoms were attributable at any level of physical exertion. The examiner stated there were no functional limitations imposed by the Veteran’s heart condition. The Veteran’s treatment records noted no functional limitations imposed by coronary artery disease and continually indicated the condition was stable. A disability benefits questionnaire submitted by the Veteran in March 2012, also noted no functional limitations. Thus, the weight of the evidence does no show that the limitations imposed by service-connected coronary artery disease would impose any limitations in the Veteran obtaining and following a substantially gainful occupation, and a TDIU is not warranted for coronary artery disease alone. The Veteran’s remaining disabilities do not meet the schedular threshold for a TDIU rating. Still, they are considered as to whether they individually prevent the Veteran from securing and following a substantially gainful occupation. The Veteran’s PTSD was noted at a June 2019 examination to produced symptoms of anxiety, chronic sleep impairment, mild memory loss, flattened affect, impaired abstract thinking, difficulty establishing and maintaining effective work relationships, and difficulty in adapting to stressful circumstances. The Veteran denied his PTSD resulted in any interference in activities of daily living. His memory was intact with minor problems relating back to a non-service-connected cerebral hemorrhage. He did not suffer from panic attacks, he denied problems with judgement or impulse control. He also reported regular fishing trips with his son and biweekly meetings with former coworkers. While the Veteran’s PTSD symptoms would interfere with securing and following employment, they do not show that they prevent it. Thus, consideration of an extraschedular TDIU for PTSD is not warranted. The Veteran’s service-connected blindness of the right eye is rated with consideration of the vision in the left eye in accordance with 38 U.S.C. § 4.75(c); however, only the right eye that is service-connected. The record does not reflect that the Veteran blindness in the right eye prevents him from securing and following a substantially gainful occupation. He has a loss of depth perception, but the record indicated he still drives himself. He maintained employment as a postal clerk for nearly 30 years with the loss of sight in his right eye. A September 2020 examiner noted there were no functional limitations due to the loss of sight in the right eye that would affect his ability to work. The Veteran’s representative argued this examination was not adequate for an aid and attendance examination; however, the matter here is SMC based on housebound criteria. The examination adequately considered the functional impacts of the right eye disability alone and is, therefore, adequate for determining the functional effects of the disability. Thus, the weight of the evidence indicates consideration of an extraschedular TDIU for loss of sight in the right eye is not warranted. The Veteran’s residuals of gunshot wounds in the left leg and foot, left thigh, face, left hand, and left shoulder were all evaluated in a July 2019 examination. In the examination the Veteran denied that any problems or restrictions related to these injuries. The examiner stated there was no functional impact due to these residuals that would affect his ability to work. Treatment records did not note any functional limitations imposed by the residuals of gunshot wounds. The Veteran has not suggested that any single one of these disabilities resulted in the inability to secure and follow a substantially gainful occupation. Indeed, the evidence of record indicates that even when considered in combination, they do not result in functional limitations. Therefore, consideration of an extraschedular TDIU for any of the Veteran’s service-connected residuals of gunshot wounds. The Board recognizes the Veteran has additional disabilities that may be significantly limiting the Veteran’s ability, including a back disability that has resulted in several surgeries and limits the Veteran’s mobility and COPD that requires portable oxygen. However, these additional disabilities are not service-connected, and their effects on the Veteran may not be considered in determining if the Veteran is eligible for SMC based on housebound status. In this matter, the preponderance of the evidence is against establishing the Veteran has any single service-connected disability that warranted a 100 percent rating, either schedularly or as a TDIU, since October 1, 2013. Therefore, the criteria for a SMC based on housebound criteria were not met and the discontinuance of the benefit was proper. K. J. ALIBRANDO Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans’ Appeals Attorney for the Board S. Reed, 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.