The Board has remanded the case due to inadequate VA examination and a potential pre-decisional duty to assist error. The Veteran's acquired psychiatric disorder, including intermittent explosive disorder and depressive disorder NOS, is being evaluated for service connection.
The deciding factor: The Board found that the September 2009 VA exam was inadequate for rating purposes due to insufficient rationale provided by the examiner and failed to address the Veteran’s depressive disorder.
- Claimed conditions
- Acquired psychiatric disorder, Intermittent explosive disorder, Depressive disorder NOS
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 31, 2019
- Citation
- A19002444
What this means for you
A remand is not a loss. The Board sent the case back for more development — often a new exam or missing records — before making a final decision. Many remands later end in a grant, and the decision spells out exactly what the Board wanted to see.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, finding a causal relationship between the condition and an in-service incident of military sexual trauma (MST).
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the issue of entitlement to service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder due to a pre-decisional duty to assist error.
- Partly granted
The Board granted an effective date of May 29, 2019 for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder but denied earlier effective dates and increased ratings for other conditions.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, a right knee disorder, and a lumbar spine disorder.
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This is general information, not legal advice. For advice about your own situation, talk to a VA-accredited representative — many help for free.