The Board has determined that the Veteran's current psychiatric disorder and substance abuse disability are related to service, granting service connection for both conditions.
The deciding factor: A VA medical opinion provided by Dr. D.R. established a nexus between the Veteran's current psychiatric disorder (major depressive disorder) and substance abuse disability and his military service.
- Claimed conditions
- an acquired psychiatric disorder (including major depressive disorder), substance abuse disorder
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- August 10, 2016
- Citation
- 1631823
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 1631823.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Veteran's claim for service connection of substance abuse disorder is denied as the evidence does not support a finding that his condition was caused by or related to active service.
- Denied
The Board denied the claims for service connection due to lack of new and relevant evidence.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeal has been dismissed due to a procedural defect involving concurrent elections of review options.
- Granted
The Veteran's service-connected PTSD and depressive disorder are granted secondary to his substance abuse disorder, with a rating of 70 percent effective February 27, 2019. The appeal for an earlier effective date is denied.
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