The veteran's claim for service connection for alcohol dependency is denied as the condition is considered to be the result of willful misconduct and not a disability for VA compensation purposes.
The deciding factor: Alcohol dependency was determined to be due to the veteran's willful misconduct and not causally related to a service-connected disability, thus precluding direct or secondary service connection.
- Claimed conditions
- Alcohol dependency
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 20, 2002
- Citation
- 0216788
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. Look up the original decision on VA.gov (opens in a new tab) using citation 0216788.
What this means for you
A denial is a starting point, not the end of the road. You can see why this claim fell short — and, if you are still inside the one-year window, the appeal lanes that may remain open to you.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, including PTSD, depressive disorder, and alcohol dependency, as the evidence did not support a causal relationship between these conditions and the Veteran's active duty service.
- Granted
The Veteran's PTSD, major depressive disorder, and alcohol dependency are rated at a 70 percent disability rating effective January 20, 2012. A TDIU for PTSD is granted effective the same date. SMC at the 's' rate is also granted effective November 19, 2019.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claim for a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected posttraumatic stress disorder with alcohol dependency is remanded as further development is required, including obtaining VA and private treatment records and scheduling the Veteran for a VA examination.
- Denied
The Board found that the Veteran does not meet the criteria for a diagnosis of PTSD and thus, service connection cannot be granted for an acquired psychiatric disorder.
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