The Board denied the Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date of service connection for a mood disorder with depressive features, finding that the earliest possible effective date was August 20, 2004.
The deciding factor: The decision is based on VA regulations which state that the effective date for a grant of service connection on the basis of new and material evidence following a final prior disallowance is the date of receipt of the application to reopen, or the date entitlement arose, whichever is later. In this case, the Veteran's claim was reopened in August 20, 2004.
- Claimed conditions
- mood disorder with depressive features
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- January 7, 2010
- Citation
- 1000939
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. Read the original VA decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 1000939.
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: Granted
The Veteran's claim for service connection for a mood disorder with depressive features was granted, effective March 23, 2023.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Board granted an effective date of June 27, 2016, for a total disability rating based on individual unemployability and special monthly compensation.
- Whole decision: Partly granted
The Veteran was granted an initial 70 percent disability rating for a mood disorder with depressive features from June 22, 2000 until January 1, 2003 and a 100 percent rating from January 1, 2003 until January 25, 2012. The claim for an increased rating was denied for the period starting August 5, 2020.
- Whole decision: Granted
The Board granted earlier effective dates of September 22, 2022, for service connection and increased ratings based on the Veteran's intent to file a claim received on that date.
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