PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) decisions — 2014

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disability, to include PTSD and for a higher initial rating for peptic ulcer disease (PUD).

The Veteran's PTSD symptoms have been found to be indicative of occupational and social impairment with occasional decrease in work efficiency, resulting in an initial evaluation of 30 percent. The claim for hypertension secondary to PTSD was denied.

The Veteran's appeal involves two periods of service-connected PTSD with polysubstance abuse. The rating for the period prior to May 2002 was increased, but not for the period from May 2002 to August 4, 2003.

The Board denied service connection for a psychiatric disorder, including PTSD and intermittent explosive disorder, finding that the current psychiatric disability was not causally related to service.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's tinnitus is service-connected, and he is also granted service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder other than PTSD. The claims are based on direct evidence of a link between current conditions and military service.

The Veteran's appeal is denied as the Board finds that new and material evidence has not been received to reopen claims for service connection for a lumbar spine disability, porphyria cutanea tarda (PCD), and PTSD. The Veteran's reports of in-service stressors are deemed unreliable.

The Veteran's hypertension was denied as not caused or aggravated by his service-connected PTSD. The Veteran's PTSD with depression is currently rated at 50% since August 13, 2009.

The Veteran's claim for an increased rating for left ear hearing loss was denied as his audiometric testing has revealed no worse than Level II hearing in the left ear.

The Board has granted service connection for the cause of the Veteran's death, finding that his PTSD contributed to his development of dementia and ultimately caused his death from aspiration pneumonia. The claim for an enhanced rate of DIC based on need for regular A&A or being housebound is remanded.

The Board has determined that new and material evidence has been received to reopen the claim of service connection for PTSD, and it is at least as likely as not that the Veteran has PTSD related to his military service.

The Veteran's PTSD with depressive disorder resulted in occupational and social impairment, but not total occupational and social impairment. The RO granted a 70% disability rating for the period beginning from October 19, 2007.

The Board has remanded the case for additional development, including obtaining private treatment records and a psychiatric examination to determine the nature and etiology of any diagnosed psychiatric disabilities.

The Veteran's PTSD has been rated at 70 percent since December 7, 2004. The TDIU claim is also granted.

The Veteran's appeal of the disability rating and effective date for his service-connected mood disorder with depressive features and PTSD has been withdrawn by his authorized representative.

The Veteran's appeal is being remanded due to the need for a new VA examination and the retrieval of outstanding VA treatment records. The case will be readjudicated based on all evidence.

The Board has remanded the case for additional development due to missing VA treatment records and the need to consider the Veteran's participation in the VA Vocational Rehabilitation Program.

The Board found that prior authorization was not provided by VA for the private treatment on July 21, 2011. Therefore, the claim is denied.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities (coronary artery disease, hearing loss, and posttraumatic stress disorder) are severe enough to prevent him from securing or following a substantially gainful occupation.

The Veteran's combined rating for service-connected disabilities is currently at 70 percent, which does not meet the requirement of being permanently and totally disabled due to service-connected disability. Therefore, he is not eligible for CHAMPVA benefits.

The Veteran's PTSD with claustrophobia is productive of a disability picture that more nearly approximates occupational and social impairment with deficiencies in most areas, warranting an initial higher rating of 70 percent.