The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for service connection for PTSD with secondary depressive disorder is denied as the earliest date of entitlement to this benefit is May 2004, and the earliest date VA received a valid application was August 28, 2003.
The deciding factor: The effective date cannot be earlier than August 28, 2003 due to the Veteran's failure to file timely appeals of prior adverse decisions and his constructive abandonment of his February 1999 application to reopen his PTSD claim. The earliest date entitlement arose is May 2004 when VA received evidence linking the Veteran's current diagnosis of PTSD to service.
- Claimed conditions
- Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) with secondary depressive disorder
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- January 26, 2010
- Citation
- 1003665
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 1003665.
What this means for you
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What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Veteran's PTSD, along with a secondary depressive disorder, has resulted in significant occupational and social impairment since January 27, 2010. The Board has determined that the criteria for a 70 percent rating have been met.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for increased ratings for his service-connected lumbar myositis, psychoneurosis and conversion hysteria, residuals of shrapnel wounds of the left thigh and pelvis with retained foreign bodies and scars, and residuals of shell fragment wounds of the right thigh and left leg. The veteran was also denied entitlement to a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for an initial evaluation in excess of 10 percent for his service-connected coronary artery disease, finding that the evidence did not support a higher rating based on the severity of his condition.
- Denied
The Veteran's service-connected musculoligamentous strain, right knee, is currently rated at 10 percent and the Board finds that a higher rating is not warranted.
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