Depression Board decisions

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities prevented him from securing or following substantially gainful employment from March 29, 2012, to April 23, 2025. The Board granted a TDIU during this period.

The Veteran's PTSD with GAD and MDD is currently rated at 70 percent, but does not meet the criteria for a higher evaluation due to insufficient evidence of total occupational and social impairment.

The Veteran's service connection claims for various conditions have been granted, including back disability, tinea pedis and tinea unguium, right foot degenerative changes, left hip disability, left knee arthritis, and psychiatric disabilities. The Board also found that the bilateral lower extremity radiculopathy is secondary to his back disability.

The Veteran's acquired psychiatric disorder, diagnosed as major depression, is granted service connection. Hearing loss and visual impairment are denied due to lack of evidence linking these conditions to service. Right shoulder disability remains in dispute.

The Veteran's appeal to the Board of Veterans' Appeals was dismissed because it was not filed within one year from the May 26, 2022 rating decision denying service connection for depression, anxiety, and adjustment disorders. The Veteran did not provide good cause for the late filing.

The Veteran's appeal for service connection of his acquired psychiatric disability, including unspecified depressive disorder, adjustment disorder, and anxiety is remanded due to the need for a medical nexus opinion.

The Veteran's depressive disorder is rated at 70 percent from January 28, 2019. An earlier effective date of February 15, 2019, for basic eligibility for DEA benefits has been granted. The claims of TDIU and SMC are being remanded.

The Veteran's tinnitus has been granted service connection. The dental condition appeal was dismissed as the Veteran withdrew his appeal during a hearing. Service connection for an acquired psychiatric disability (to include depression, anxiety, and PTSD) is denied.,Service connection for a left hip disability remains pending and will be remanded.

The Veteran's GERD, major depressive disorder and anxiety disorder, and bilateral pes planus are all granted as service connected due to aggravation of preexisting conditions.

The Veteran's claim for an increased rating for his depressive disorder with anxious distress was denied, and the Board also found that he is not entitled to a TDIU based on his service-connected psychiatric disability alone.

The Veteran's emphysema, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and other spontaneous pneumothorax status post thoracotomy is rated as 100% disabling since February 28, 2024. His major depressive disorder is separately rated at 70%. The Board finds that the Veteran meets the criteria for special monthly compensation under 38 U.S.C. § 1114(s) due to his service-connected disabilities.

The Veteran's acquired psychiatric disorder, characterized as PTSD and other specified trauma and stressor related disorder, was granted service connection. The effective date for the right elbow scar ratings is set at December 17, 2018.

The Board has granted service connection for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and Major depressive disorder, finding that the evidence is approximately evenly balanced as to whether these conditions began during active service.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for body dysmorphia, noncombat-related psychosis, adjustment disorder, depression, and GAD have been denied. The claim for an increased rating for OSTSRD has also been denied.

The Board has remanded the claims for cervical spine strain, lumbosacral strain with associated sciatica, bilateral hip and knee disabilities, chronic ankle disabilities, foot problems, hypertension, migraine headaches, MDD, and PTSD due to inadequate medical opinions and failure to obtain examinations or opinions where the low threshold of McLendon was met.

The Veteran's major depressive disorder is related to her military service, and the Board has granted service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder.

The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for additional dependency compensation for his current spouse, R. R. A., is denied as he did not provide all necessary information to establish his entitlement within one year of the January 2018 rating decision which established and continued his disability compensation.

The Veteran's depressive disorder was granted a 100% disability rating effective February 20, 2024. The appeal is also granted for the direct payment of additional attorney fees based on past due benefits awarded in the July 2024 rating decision.

The Veteran's appeal for service connection for a psychiatric disorder, including anxiety, depression, obsessive compulsive disorder, and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), has been dismissed due to the death of the Veteran during the pendency of the appeal.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including his bilateral lower extremity neuropathy due to diabetes mellitus, have resulted in loss of use of both lower extremities. The Board has granted eligibility for specially adapted housing and dismissed the claim for a special home adaptation grant as moot.