The Veteran's claim for an initial rating greater than 30 percent from June 12, 1985, to March 16, 2011, for his service-connected acquired psychiatric disability other than PTSD (Generalized Anxiety Disorder and Depression) was denied. The Board found the evidence did not support a higher rating during this period.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's symptoms were minimal throughout the relevant time frame, with complaints of anxiety, nightmares, difficulty sleeping, nervousness, and depression being at worst.
- Claimed conditions
- Generalized Anxiety Disorder, Depression
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- February 21, 2019
- Citation
- 19112964
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,017 · Granted: 36% (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 19112964.
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient findings regarding PTSD and depression, requiring a new VA examination.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to errors in the AOJ's handling of the Veteran's claims for service connection for PTSD, other specified trauma and stressor-related disorder, and depression. The AOJ is required to verify the Veteran's claimed stressor and obtain medical opinions regarding the diagnoses and their relation to service.
- Granted
The Board has determined that the Veteran's generalized anxiety disorder is related to his active-duty service and has granted service connection for this condition.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Anxiety, and Depression as these conditions are found to be related to the Veteran's active military service.
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