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
- Not verified here — check the original 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. Search VA.gov for the original decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 0216788.
What this means for you
A final Board denial may be appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, generally within 120 days of the Board mailing date. A Supplemental Claim with new and relevant evidence is a separate option. Another Higher-Level Review of the Board decision is not available. Check your own notice: this historical decision does not set your deadline.
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: 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.
- Whole decision: 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.
- Whole decision: 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.
- Whole decision: 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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