The Veteran's service connection claim for sleep disorder, including insomnia, hypersomnia, and circadian rhythm disorder, is denied as the condition did not have its onset in or is otherwise related to her active duty service.
The deciding factor: The OSA was not diagnosed until 14 years after she left the service, and there is no evidence that it had its onset during service. The Veteran's current OSA is considered psychologic in origin and does not meet the criteria for service connection.
- Claimed conditions
- sleep disorder, insomnia, narcolepsy, hypersomnia, circadian rhythm disorder, obstructive sleep apnea
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 28, 2019
- Citation
- 19106587
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.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for obstructive sleep apnea, effective from the date of the February 2025 rating decision.
- Dismissed
The Veteran withdrew the appeals for service connection for bilateral pes planus, obstructive sleep apnea, bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the issue of entitlement to service connection for obstructive sleep apnea due to a duty to assist error.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for asthma and remanded claims for insomnia and sleep apnea. Other conditions were denied.
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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.