The Veteran's claim for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, including PTSD, is denied as his period of other than honorable service ended with a bad conduct discharge. The weight of the evidence does not support a finding that his current anxiety symptoms are related to his first period of honorable service.,The Veteran's claim for service connection for sleep apnea is denied as there is no evidence of any in-service injury or disease related to this condition, and the weight of the evidence does not support a finding that his current sleep disorder is related to his first period of honorable service.
The deciding factor: Service connection for PTSD based on other than honorable service is precluded by law. The Veteran's anxiety symptoms are attributed to his second period of service in Iraq, and there is no evidence linking these symptoms to his first period of honorable service.,There is no evidence of any injury or disease related to sleep apnea during the Veteran's first period of honorable service. His current sleep disorder is not linked to this period of service.
- Claimed conditions
- Acquired Psychiatric Disorder, Sleep Apnea
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 6, 2014
- Citation
- 1400233
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 1400233.
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 the Veteran's claims for service connection for PTSD and any acquired psychiatric disorder, finding that there was no evidence to support a link between his current mental health conditions and his military service.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for sleep apnea, finding that the evidence did not support a link between the condition and service.
- Denied
The claims for PTSD, an acquired psychiatric disorder, memory loss/memory problems, chronic fatigue, sleep difficulties/sleep disturbances, and sleep apnea have been denied. The claim for service connection for residuals of testicular denervation and varicosectomy has been granted.
- Granted
The Veteran's acquired psychiatric disorder is granted a 70% rating, effective July 15, 2024. The Veteran's GERD remains at a 10% rating.
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