Question:
My father served in the Vietnam War, doing 2 tours. He died at the age of 47. The cause of death on the death certificate is listed as cardiac arrhythmia (lasting 6 minutes) and coronary artery disease (20 years). My mom is attempting to get DIC benefits and was told by VSA that since "ischemic heart disease " is not listed she would likely not be entitled. Can you tell me if my fathers cause of death excludes her from DIC?
Jim's Reply:
I'm very sorry to learn of the loss of your Vietnam veteran dad.
Coronary Artery Disease (CAD) and Ischemic Heart Disease (IHD) are one and the same thing. The term CAD is the most often used in the American health care system so the VA decided to be obtuse and develop a term no one else uses.
In any case the death certificate as it reads should be enough to prove eligibility. What concerns me is the amount of time that has passed since his death...I'm assuming that was some time ago because of his young age. I'll offer that she is eligible for help from an accredited veterans law attorney with no out of pocket expense should she run into any issues at VA. In fact, I'd urge you to start engaging attorneys now and choose one who will best represent her. You can choose any of the lawyers you'll meet at the link below...a veterans lawyer can represent from anywhere in the nation.
Please see https://www.vawatchdog.org/how-to-hire-a-veterans-law-attorney.html Good luck.