The Veteran is seeking service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, claimed as depression, related to his service-connected bilateral knee disabilities. The Board has determined that remand is necessary due to the need to obtain additional medical records and provide addendum opinions regarding the relationship between the Veteran's psychiatric disorders and his service-connected bilateral knee disabilities.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's mental health history may have begun prior to 2010, outside of VA treatment records. The Board also notes that claims for service connection encompass all diagnosed psychiatric disorders, not just those related to the claimed condition.
- Claimed conditions
- schizophrenia, unspecified schizophrenia, psychosis NOS, schizophrenia paranoid type, adjustment disorder unspecified
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 3, 2019
- Citation
- 19100111
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,062 · Granted: 34% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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 19100111.
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 Veteran's schizophrenia is rated at 70 percent, indicating significant impairment in work and social functioning.
- Dismissed
The Board dismissed the claims for an effective date prior to August 18, 2016, for a 100 percent disability rating for schizophrenia and for spousal SMC for aid and attendance. The Veteran's claim was erroneously adjudicated by the AOJ and constitutes a free-standing earlier effective date claim.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has found that the Appellant's discharge from service is not a bar to VA compensation benefits, but it was an error in fulfilling VA's duty to assist not to obtain a medical opinion addressing the extent of any psychiatric symptoms during service and their effect on the Appellant's behavior. The matter is therefore remanded for further action.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's past-due benefits from the May 2024 rating decision were not fully paid to him, and the Board has ordered VA to quickly verify and pay any remaining amounts owed.
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