Acquired psychiatric disorder decisions — 2026

The Board has granted service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder and tinnitus, finding that the Veteran's current conditions are related to his military service.

The Board has denied service connection for neck disability, bilateral foot disability, and an acquired psychiatric disorder (to include schizophrenia and PTSD) as there is no evidence of current disabilities or a nexus to service.,The Veteran did not provide good cause for missing scheduled VA examinations for his claimed conditions.

The Veteran's initial claim for a higher rating for TBI residuals with Parkinson's disease and vertigo was denied. A separate evaluation of 50 percent, but no higher, for his psychiatric disability from January 17, 2014, to November 7, 2019, is granted.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, including as PTSD and/or mood disorders, finding that there is no evidence to support a link between his current mental health conditions and his military service. The primary diagnosis found was alcohol use disorder, which is not compensable under VA law.

The Veteran's psychiatric disorder is found to have begun during active service and granted service connection.

The Veteran's appeal of the sinus condition issue has been dismissed due to their passing away. The acquired psychiatric disorder issue is no longer on appeal as it was granted.

The Veteran's acquired psychiatric disorder, including chronic PTSD, mood disorder due to known physiological condition with depressive features and alcohol dependence in remission, is related to his service. The claim for service connection has been granted.

The Board has determined that there are pre-decisional duty to assist errors warranting remand for the following reasons: obtaining SSA records, providing a VA addendum medical opinion regarding the Veteran's acquired psychiatric disorder, and addressing the TDIU claim.

The Board has remanded the claims of service connection for sinus arrhythmia, left ear hearing loss, right ear hearing loss, chronic sinusitis, and chronic headaches. The claim for an acquired psychiatric disorder (PTSD) is also being remanded.

The Veteran's claim for a higher rating for his service-connected acquired psychiatric disorder is being remanded due to the need to obtain private treatment records from Kaiser Permanente.

The appeal for service connection of an acquired psychiatric disability has been dismissed as moot because the matter was granted in a separate January 2026 rating decision.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's claimed conditions of obstructive sleep apnea, an acquired psychiatric disorder, and a back disability did not have their onset during service or are otherwise related to service. The evidence does not support a finding that these conditions were incurred in service or are due to a service-connected condition.

The Veteran's acquired psychiatric disability, including delusional disorder, is granted a 100% evaluation effective January 30, 2007. The appeal for an earlier effective date of Dependents' Educational Assistance (DEA) benefits is also granted.

The Board has denied the claims for service connection for tinnitus, an acquired psychiatric disorder (claimed as anxiety and major depression), and schizophrenia due to a lack of evidence showing these conditions had their onset during the appellant's period of active duty for training.

The Veteran's acquired psychiatric condition, including unspecified trauma and stressor related disorder and/or PTSD, was reduced from a 70% rating to a 50% rating effective October 1, 2020. The reduction is upheld as the evidence shows improvement in symptoms.

The Veteran's death was not caused by or related to service-connected conditions, and he did not meet the criteria for VA burial benefits. A plot/interment allowance is granted, but no other benefits are awarded.

The Board has determined that new and relevant evidence has been received to readjudicate the claim of entitlement to service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder. The AOJ will now consider the merits of this claim.

The Board denied service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, including PTSD, finding that the Veteran did not meet the criteria for a diagnosis of PTSD and there was no evidence linking any diagnosed psychiatric condition to his military service.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for obstructive sleep apnea was denied. The Veteran received a 10 percent rating for his psychiatric disability prior to September 23, 2025 and the issue of remanding for increased ratings on several other conditions is noted.

The Board has decided to remand the case due to missing medical records and SSA disability records. The Veteran's claim for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder will be reconsidered with these additional records.