The veteran's claim for vocational rehabilitation benefits under Chapter 31 was denied due to the fact that his service-connected dysthymic disorder did not contribute significantly to his employment handicap. The RO is instructed to conduct a new evaluation and determine if he has a serious employment handicap.
The deciding factor: The veteran's only service-connected disability (dysthymic disorder) rated as 10% disabling did not substantially contribute to his employment handicap, leading to the denial of benefits under Chapter 31.
- Claimed conditions
- hypertension, dysthymic disorder
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 20, 2006
- Citation
- 0608028
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 493 · Granted: 28% (granted or partly granted, in the indexed decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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 0608028.
What this means for you
A remand sends an issue back for more development, often a new examination or missing records. It does not award the benefit or decide the final outcome. The original decision explains the additional work ordered.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
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- Denied
The Veteran's claim for service connection for hypertension and increased rating for anxiety disorder have been denied. The Board found that there is no evidence of a current disability meeting the criteria for hypertension, and the Veteran's anxiety disorder does not meet the criteria for a higher rating.
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