The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for a psychiatric disorder, finding that there is no evidence to support a nexus between his current diagnoses and military service.
The deciding factor: The preponderance of the evidence does not support a nexus between the Veteran’s bipolar disorder and service; and because alcohol and drug abuse or dependence are not an acquired psychiatric disorder for which a grant of service connection is possible, service connection was denied.
- Claimed conditions
- Psychiatric Disorder
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 11, 2019
- Citation
- 19128175
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.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for a bilateral hearing loss disability, psychiatric disorder, lumbar spine disability, hypertension, and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) as the evidence did not support a finding that these conditions were related to the Veteran's military service.
- Partly granted
The Board granted an effective date of June 23, 2023, for the award of a 50 percent rating for a psychiatric disorder but denied earlier effective dates for service connection and special monthly compensation.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board dismissed the claim for service connection for acne and remanded claims for service connection for bilateral pes planus, ED, allergic rhinitis, and a psychiatric disorder for readjudication with new evidence.
- Partly granted
The Board granted a 70 percent rating for the Veteran's psychiatric disorder and remanded issues related to increased ratings for hand and wrist disabilities and service connection for OSA.
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