PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) decisions — 2021

The Board has remanded the cases for further development due to concerns about the competency of the VA examiner.

Service connection for IBS is granted.,PTSD with Depression and Panic Disorder was previously denied, but a higher rating of 50% prior to September 8, 2015, and 70% on or after that date is granted.,Lumbosacral Strain has been rated at 10% prior to January 11, 2021, and 20% on or after that date. The claim for a higher rating remains pending.,Right Lower Extremity Radiculopathy was previously denied, but the claim is remanded due to insufficient evidence.

The Veteran's appeal regarding whether new and relevant evidence has been submitted to readjudicate a claim seeking service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, including PTSD, is dismissed. The Board finds no prejudice as the Veteran will continue to have an opportunity to pursue this claim under the legacy appeal system.

The Veteran's service-connected PTSD and coronary artery disease do not prevent him from securing or following a substantially gainful occupation, as he had earnings consistent with such employment prior to his retirement.

The Veteran's appeal is remanded for further development to confirm his service in Vietnam and to obtain opinions regarding the relationship between his claimed conditions and his active service.

A 100 percent rating for PTSD, with other substance abuse disorder and TBI with peripheral vestibular disorder, from August 14, 2008 to the present, is granted. Service connection for a vision disorder is denied.

The Veteran's PTSD has been granted a 70% rating, but his claims for increased ratings of other conditions have been dismissed. The Board found that the right elbow and right ankle conditions were not related to service.

The Veteran's appeal is remanded for further development to confirm his service in Vietnam and to obtain opinions regarding the relationship between his claimed conditions and his active service.

The Board has decided to remand the case due to pre-decisional duty to assist errors, and the Veteran's claim for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, including PTSD, will be returned to the AOJ for further development.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities do not render him unable to obtain or maintain gainful employment, and therefore his claim for a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities is denied.

The Veteran's PTSD with TBI is rated at 70 percent, and the Board has decided to remand this case for further examination to determine if there are overlapping symptoms between PTSD and TBI.

The Board has determined that the Veteran's anxiety disorder is related to his military service, but denied service connection for PTSD.

The Board has granted service connection for PTSD and assigned a rating of 70 percent effective February 7, 2018. The Veteran's appeal was not about the exposure basis or the PACT Act.

The Board denied a disability rating in excess of 50 percent for PTSD and denied entitlement to a total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU). The Veteran's symptoms were found to be more closely approximating the level associated with a 50 percent rating.

The Veteran's PTSD was granted a 100% rating effective July 29, 2015, due to total occupational and social impairment caused by persistent delusions.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, including PTSD, is remanded due to inconsistencies in his recounting of personal history and the need for a new examination.

The Veteran's service-connected PTSD is rated at 70 percent, which meets the criteria for a TDIU on a schedular basis. However, his PTSD does not prevent him from securing or following a substantially gainful occupation.

The Board has remanded the cases due to issues with the initial determinations and a need for further development, including obtaining medical records from VA partnership programs. The Veteran's PTSD case is remanded for a new examination to assess suicidal ideation and its impact on his social and occupational functioning. His hearing loss claim requires clarification of evidence meeting VA standards for hearing loss diagnosis. And his sinusitis case needs a new examination to determine if he has headaches related to the condition.

The Veteran's claim for an increased disability rating for PTSD is being remanded due to the need for a more contemporaneous medical examination.

The Veteran's initial rating for PTSD was denied, and a TDIU based solely on PTSD was granted.,Service connection for eczema/dermatitis is remanded.