Justia U.S. Federal Circuit Court of Appeals Opinion Summaries

Youngman, fiduciary for deceased veteran Richardson, sought payment of accrued benefits of about $350,000 that had been awarded to Richardson before his death. Payment had been delayed while the Kansas state courts were accrediting Youngman as successor fiduciary for Richardson, who had been adjudged incompetent several years earlier. Richardson died after the accreditation but before payment. The VA denied payment. The Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims affirmed. Periodic monetary benefits to which an individual was entitled at death are to be paid to the veteran's spouse, children, or dependent parents and, in “all other cases, only so much of the accrued benefits may be paid as may be necessary to reimburse the person who bore the expense of last sickness and burial” 38 U.S.C.5121(a). Richardson had only cousins as heirs. The Federal Circuit affirmed. While 38 U.S.C. 5502 allows a fiduciary to stand in the shoes of a veteran, it does not grant the fiduciary rights beyond those of the veteran himself. Richardson died without any heirs in the categories qualifying under 5121, so his unpaid benefits died with him. View "Youngman v. Shinseki" on Justia Law

Hibbard, then 41 years old and working as a teacher, received a flu vaccination in 2003. She claims that the flu vaccine caused her to develop a neurological disorder known as dysautonomia, a dysfunction of the autonomic nervous system and sought compensation under the National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act of 1986, 42 U.S.C.300aa-1 to 300aa-34. Following a two-day hearing, a special master found that Hibbard had failed to show that her dysautonomia resulted from autonomic neuropathy caused by the vaccine she received in 2003. The Court of Federal Claims upheld the decision. The Federal Circuit affirmed, finding substantial evidence to support the denial. View "Hibbard v. Sec'y Health & Human Servs." on Justia Law

Hillyard suffered a head injury and was hospitalized for two weeks while serving in the U.S. Army. Hillyard filed a single claim for service connection for a mental condition, which he attributed to his in-service head injury. The Veterans Administration denied his claim and the Board affirmed and subsequently denied Hillyard’s request for revision. The Veterans Court affirmed. Hillyard later filed a second request for revision alleging clear and unmistakable error (CUE) by the Board in failing to consider and apply 38 U.S.C. 105(a) and 1111, a different CUE allegation from the one he made in his first request. The Board dismissed the second request for revision with prejudice, concluding 38 C.F.R. 20.1409(c) permitted only one request for revision to be filed. The Veterans Court affirmed. The Federal Circuit affirmed. The interpretation of Rule 1409(c) proffered by the VA is consistent with the language of the regulation and is in harmony with the VA’s description of the regulation in its notice of rule-making. View "Hillyard v. Shinseki" on Justia Law

Griglock, a 70-year-old retired woman, received an influenza vaccination in 2005. Weeks later, she went to her doctor, complaining of weakness, and was admitted to the hospital. Her treating neurologist determined that she suffered from Guillain-Barré Syndrome. She improved initially, but soon developed respiratory failure and was placed on a ventilator. She died about 18 months later; her death certificate lists “ventilator-dependent respiratory failure due to GBS” as the immediate cause of death. Her estate filed a petition for compensation under the Vaccine Injury Compensation Program, 42 U.S.C. 300aa-1, 300aa-10(a). The government responded that there was insufficient evidence to find that the influenza vaccine caused her GBS and death, but that it would not contest the issue and recommended an award of up to $250,000. The estate then sought unreimbursable medical expenses and compensation for pain and suffering. The Special Master determined that Griglock’s death was caused by an influenza vaccination, that her estate had standing, but that entitlement was limited to death benefits because injury benefits were barred by the statute of limitations. The Court of Federal Claims affirmed. The Federal Circuit affirmed. View "Griglock v. Sec'y of Health & Human Servs." on Justia Law

Gallo served as an FAA air traffic control specialist from 1982 until 1995 when she experienced a job-related injury for which she received OWCP benefits. Gallo recovered enough to return to light duty. In 1996 she lost her medical certification to continue as an operational ATCS. Until 2000 she was assigned to a “non-operational” automation specialist position, which did not provide the same retirement credit or weekend pay. She received OWCP benefits for the differential. Gallo fully recovered in 2000 and received medical clearance; the Agency terminated OWCP benefit. She applied for restoration under 5 U.S.C. 8151(b)(2), which provides the right to priority consideration for restoration to federal employees who have overcome a compensable injury. The Agency assigned Gallo to a supervisory ATCS position. In setting her salary, the Agency did not take into account pay increases granted to operational ATCS employees during while Gallo was working as an automation specialist. The Merit Systems Protection Board denied her claim. The Federal Circuit reversed. The Board erred in interpreting “resumes employment with the Federal Government” under section 8151(a), and any pay increases that Gallo would have received based on her creditable service time with the federal government are “benefits based on length of service.” View "Gallo v. Dep't of Transp." on Justia Law

Locane, born in 1983, was adopted and does not know her family medical history. She suffered her first symptoms within two weeks of being vaccinated in 1997 and was diagnosed with Crohn’s Disease. She sought compensation under the National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act, 42 U.S.C. 300aa-1 to -34, alleging that she suffered Crohn’s disease as a result of hepatitis B vaccination. A special master denied the claim, finding Locane’s disease began before her vaccination and that Locane failed to prove by a preponderance of the evidence that the vaccine caused or significantly aggravated her disease. The Federal Circuit affirmed. View "Locane v. Sec'y of Health & Human Servs." on Justia Law

Frederick, previously married to World War II veteran Hill, upon Hill's death became entitled to Dependency and Indemnity Compensation as surviving spouse of a veteran whose death resulted from service-related injury or disease, 38 U.S.C. 1310-1318. In 1986 she remarried at age 57. Until January 1, 2004, the law provided that a surviving spouse receiving DIC benefits lost entitlement to those benefits upon remarriage. The Veterans Benefits, Act of 2003, amending 38 U.S.C. 103(d)(2)(B), added language that “remarriage after age 57 of the surviving spouse of a veteran shall not bar the furnishing of DIC.” Congress also provided new DIC eligibility for surviving spouses who remarried after the age of 57, but before the date of enactment of the Act. The Regional VA Office denied Mrs. Frederick’s 2007 application for reinstatement as untimely. The Board of Appeals rejected her notice argument. The Veterans Court held that she was entitled to benefits. The Federal Circuit reversed, rejecting an argument that she is simply not covered by one-year limitation in subsection (e). View "Frederick v. Shinseki" on Justia Law

Heino, a veteran, is prescribed a daily dose of 12.5 milligrams of Atenolol. The lowest strength available for the prescription is a 25 milligram tablet, so his physician instructed him to split each tablet in half. Heino paid a $7 copayment for a 30-day supply of 15 tablets, which he claimed was excessive in light of the fact that some veterans paid the same co-payment for twice the medication. The VA refused his request for adjustment. The Veterans Court affirmed, rejecting arguments that the regulation the VA uses to calculate his copayment amount, 38 C.F.R. 17.110, conflicts with 38 U.S.C. 1722A(a)(2), which prohibits the VA from charging a copayment “in excess of the cost to the Secretary for medication,” because the actual cost of his Atenolol prescription was well below $7.3, and that his copayment was excessive. The Federal Circuit affirmed. View "Heino v. Shinseki" on Justia Law

Thompson served in the Navy from October 1973 to January 1975. During active service, he was treated for psychiatric symptoms, attributed to immature personality disorder. Over the following years, he was hospitalized sporadically based upon complaints of a nervous disorder and an inability to get along with others. In 1984 he was diagnosed as a paranoid schizophrenic. He was hospitalized for schizophrenia several times between 1984 and 1991. In 2006, a VA Regional Office issued a rating decision finding no service connection with respect to any acquired psychiatric disorder. Before the Veterans Court reached the merits of an appeal, the parties filed a joint motion for partial remand citing a 2009 intervening decision. The motion was granted. Thompson then moved for attorneys’ fees and costs. The Veterans Court denied the motion, holding that he was not a prevailing party under the Equal Access to Justice Act, 28 U.S.C. 2412(d). The Federal Circuit affirmed. View "Thompson v. Shinseki" on Justia Law

Reeves served as a heavy mortar crewman during combat offensives, 1942-1945, and was awarded three Bronze Stars. In 1981, Reeves filed a claim seeking service-connected disability benefits, with a medical opinion, stating that Reeves had bilateral, nerve-type hearing loss in 1962, attributable to noise exposure or to treatment with quinine for malaria. He also submitted records of an audiogram and statements from officers with whom he had served. The board denied the claim, stating that hearing loss documented in 1962 was too remote from active service. Reeves did not appeal. In 2004, the board granted an application to re-open, citing new evidence of treatment from 1946 to 1954, and awarded him service-connected disability benefits, effective 2002. In 2006, Reeves sought revision to an earlier effective date. The board denied the motion. The Veterans Court affirmed, rejecting an assertion that the evidence of record in 1983 was such that the board had no choice but to resolve in his favor that his hearing disability was incurred in service. Reeves died in 2011; the Federal Circuit substituted his widow and reversed. The Veterans Court misinterpreted 38 U.S.C. 1154(b) in rejecting the clear and unmistakeable error claim. View "Reeves v. Shinseki" on Justia Law