The Veteran's claim for service connection for generalized anxiety, including panic disorder and simple phobia, is being remanded due to the lack of available service treatment records from her deployment in Pakistan. The Board finds a VA examination necessary to determine the nature and etiology of her claimed conditions.
The deciding factor: Service treatment records are unavailable due to no fault of the Veteran's, necessitating a VA examination to assess the nature and etiology of her claimed conditions.
- Claimed conditions
- generalized anxiety, panic disorder, simple phobia
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 16, 2019
- Citation
- 19104101
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,287 · Granted: 23% (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 19104101.
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 generalized anxiety, insomnia, and depressive disorders are related to an in-service motor vehicle accident. The Board has found that service connection is warranted for these conditions.
- Granted
The Veteran's psychiatric disabilities, including other specified and stressor related disorder, bipolar disorder, and generalized anxiety, are found to be related to her military service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the case due to pre-decisional errors in obtaining medical opinions and private treatment records, which are necessary for a proper determination of service connection for panic disorder.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for service connection due to incomplete medical opinions and a need for additional evidence. The Veteran's anxiety and panic disorder are being considered, as well as her personality disorder.
Free starter guide for your own claim
Reading this because you were denied or under-rated? Get the plain-English next steps — your appeal options, the deadline that protects you, and how appeals like yours turn out. One email, no spam.
We will only use this to send the guide. No spam, unsubscribe any time. We never sell your information.
We are not the VA. Veterans’ Rights is an independent resource built for veterans. We are not the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, not part of the government, and not endorsed by any government agency.
This is general information, not legal advice. For advice about your own situation, talk to a VA-accredited representative — many help for free.