Depression decisions — 2019

The Veteran's acquired psychiatric disorders, including PTSD and depressive disorder, are rated at 70 percent since May 18, 2017. Prior to that date, the rating was 30 percent.

The Veteran's MDD symptoms prior to July 9, 2019 caused occupational and social impairment with reduced reliability and productivity. From July 9, 2019, the severity of the Veteran's MDD symptoms did not cause total occupational and social impairment.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for a disability rating in excess of 70 percent for PTSD and major depressive disorder, as well as his claim for TDIU due to employment issues. The AOJ is instructed to obtain all relevant medical records and clarify the Veteran's employment history with FEMA.

The Veteran's claims for a higher rating for PTSD and entitlement to a TDIU rating have been granted in full, with the effective date being April 26, 2012.

The Veteran's major depression disability was granted an initial rating of 70 percent from November 30, 2010 to May 28, 2011.

The Veteran's depression and anxiety have worsened since her last examination, but the current rating does not reflect this worsening. The Board has ordered a new VA psychiatric examination to determine the current severity of her symptoms.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's acquired psychiatric disorder, including PTSD, is related to his service in Vietnam and grants service connection for this condition.

The Veteran's claims for an initial compensable rating for bilateral hearing loss and service connection for an acquired psychiatric disability, to include PTSD, depressive disorder, and anxiety disorder are being remanded due to the need for additional examinations and development of records.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, including PTSD, anxiety, and clinical anger due to a lack of verified in-service stressors and insufficient evidence linking his current conditions to service.

The Veteran's claim for bilateral lower extremity peripheral neuropathy, PTSD, and unspecified depressive disorder have been granted. A 100% rating has been assigned for PTSD.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for depression, finding that there is no legal basis to grant it as secondary to a back disability and noting that the evidence does not support a direct link between the Veteran's depression and his military service.

The Board denied service connection for PTSD, Anxiety, and Depression as there is no competent medical evidence diagnosing PTSD in accordance with DSM-V criteria. The Veteran's anxiety disorder or depression began after retirement from civilian job.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for sleep apnea and an acquired psychiatric disorder (to include depression and anxiety) have been denied as there is no evidence of a current disability or relationship to service.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for a total disability rating based upon individual unemployability (TDIU) as his service-connected disabilities did not prevent him from securing or following gainful employment until April 1, 2015.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection due to lack of VA examinations and incomplete records. The Veteran is to be scheduled for appropriate VA examinations.

The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient information regarding the Veteran's psychiatric conditions and their relationship to his military service. The Veteran needs to provide more recent medical records, including from a VA counselor, and undergo a new examination to determine if he has any acquired psychiatric disabilities, including PTSD, and whether these are related to his military service.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for sleep apnea, diabetes mellitus, type II, and depression, finding that there was no evidence to support a causal relationship between these conditions and active service or any service-connected disabilities.,The decision also noted that the Veteran had been overweight for several years prior to his diagnosis of diabetes mellitus in 2009.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for acquired psychiatric disorders, to include PTSD, depression, a sleep disorder, and a disability characterized as fainting/falling is remanded due to the submission of new evidence. The Board finds that the claims should be recharacterized as a claim for entitlement to service connection for acquired psychiatric disorders.

The Veteran's service connection claim for other specified anxiety disorder is granted. Claims for PTSD, depression, and hypertension are denied.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for an acquired psychiatric condition, including anxiety, depression, and PTSD, finding that there was no evidence linking his current conditions to his military service.