The veteran's combined disability rating is 70 percent effective March 1997, and he is entitled to a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities.
The deciding factor: The VA medical advisory opinion rendered the veteran unable to follow substantial gainful occupation due to his service connected disabilities, including the June 2001 VA medical advisory opinion which noted that the veteran's physical disabilities prevented his success as a letter carrier and his severe interpersonal difficulties due to PTSD prevented him from continuing his employment as a prison guard.
- Claimed conditions
- post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), residuals of injury to the right upper extremity involving muscle groups III and IV, cervical radiculopathy of the right arm, hand and fingers, Horner's syndrome involving the right side of the face and eye
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- October 1, 2001
- Citation
- 0123869
This is a plain-language summary generated by AI from a public Board of Veterans’ Appeals decision. It can contain errors — always verify against the original. Search VA.gov for the original decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 0123869.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board allowed the benefit or issue identified in this decision. Review the original order: other issues in the same appeal may have a different outcome, and this decision does not predict another claim.
What you can do next
Use your own notice and decision stage. A remanded issue is not a final court-appealable denial. VA review guidance and CAVC filing instructions (U.S. federal; reviewed October 7, 2026).
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Veteran's service-connected PTSD with MDD is found to be the cause of his sleep apnea, and he has been granted secondary service connection for this condition.
- Whole decision: Dismissed
The Board has dismissed the appeals for service connection for erectile dysfunction, cervical spine condition, OSA, anxiety disorder, PTSD, and depression disorder as they were previously denied by prior decisions that have not been vacated or remanded.
- Whole decision: Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection for a neck disorder, hair loss, PTSD, bilateral foot disorder, bilateral arm numbness, and restless body syndrome due to pre-decisional duty to assist errors.
- Whole decision: Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for a total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU) due to service-connected disabilities, finding that the evidence did not support a conclusion that his service-connected conditions prevented him from securing or following substantially gainful employment.
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