Acquired psychiatric disorder Board decisions

The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claims for a disability rating and TDIU due to incomplete records, particularly regarding private psychiatric treatment. The AOJ is instructed to obtain these records and re-adjudicate the claims.

The Veteran's acquired psychiatric disorder, including PTSD and bipolar disorder, was not shown in service or for many years thereafter, and is not otherwise related to active-duty service. Therefore, the claim for service connection is denied.

The Board has determined that there were errors in the duty to assist and remands several issues for further development, including psychiatric disorders, back disability, sleep apnea, right knee disability, left knee disability, and left shoulder disability.

The Board has remanded the case due to inadequate opinions and missing service treatment records. The Veteran's acquired psychiatric disability, including other specified trauma and stressor related disorder with insomnia, is being considered for service connection.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for schizophrenia is being remanded due to the submission of new medical evidence that was not considered in the previous denial.

The Board denied all service connection claims and the increased rating claim for myositis of the lumbar spine, finding that the Veteran's disability did not meet or approximate the criteria for a higher rating under the applicable VA rating schedule.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection due to insufficient evidence regarding the relationship between his sleep apnea and acquired psychiatric disorder, specifically whether they are caused or aggravated by his service-connected hypertension, coronary artery disease (CAD), and/or erectile dysfunction.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for arthritis and an acquired psychiatric disability (claimed as PTSD) due to insufficient evidence linking these conditions to his military service.

The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for service connection of his acquired psychiatric disorder, to include schizophrenia, is denied as there are no unadjudicated or pending claims prior to August 16, 2016.

The Board has determined that the March 2021 rating decision on appeal is remanded due to deficiencies in the February 2021 VA medical opinion and pre-decisional duty to assist errors regarding service connection for restrictive lung disease, psychiatric disorder, enlarged fatty liver, and GERD.

The Veteran's claims for tinnitus and a psychiatric disability have been fully granted since the initial claim, so there is no live case or controversy left to address. The appeal has therefore been dismissed as a matter of law.

The Veteran's appeal for an increased disability rating and earlier effective date for PTSD and MDD was dismissed because the June 2020 rating decision was not an initial decision subject to appeal in the AMA system via the submission of a VA Form 10182.

The Veteran's appeal for service connection and increased rating for acquired psychiatric disorders other than his already service-connected PTSD is denied. The Board found that the symptoms of these conditions are encompassed within his existing PTSD rating.

The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date of October 11, 2013, for service connection of an acquired psychiatric disorder is granted. The Board also remanded the issues of entitlement to TDIU on an extraschedular basis prior to November 17, 2020, and SMC Housebound prior to November 17, 2020.

The Veteran's hypertension is granted as presumptively related to in-service herbicide agent exposure under the PACT Act. The issues of service connection for sleep apnea, left foot neuropathy, right foot neuropathy, and an acquired psychiatric disorder are remanded due to a duty-to-assist error.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection due to a lack of VA examinations, and he is still homeless.

The Board has remanded the case due to an inadequate VA examination and a need for further clarification of the Veteran's acquired psychiatric disorder, including PTSD.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities do not meet the criteria for a total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU) as her combined evaluation does not reach the required percentage threshold, and there is no evidence that she is unable to secure or follow substantially gainful employment due to her service-connected conditions.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder and Acquired Psychiatric Disorder to include Anxiety and Depression, finding that there was no evidence showing a causal relationship between these conditions and his military service.

The Veteran's appeal for a higher rating for his service-connected acquired psychiatric disorder was denied. A rating of 70 percent has been granted, effective from February 1, 2021.