The Veteran's appeal for an increased rating for other specified depressive disorder is dismissed.,The claim of service connection for residuals of a chemical injury to the eyes, to include corneal ulcers, has been reopened. The effective date prior to September 9, 2015, for the grant of service connection for other specified depressive disorder is denied.
The deciding factor: The Veteran requested withdrawal of his appeal regarding an increased rating for other specified depressive disorder.,New evidence received since June 2005 relates to a chemical injury to the eyes and raises a reasonable possibility of substantiating service connection for eye injuries. The claim is therefore reopened.
- Claimed conditions
- Other specified depressive disorder, Corneal ulcers, Calcific patella tendonitis with associated patellofemoral arthritis of the left knee
- How they argued it
- Reopened with new and material evidence
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 3, 2019
- Citation
- 19134361
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,548 · Granted: 31% (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 19134361.
What this means for you
A dismissal means the Board did not decide the issue on its merits — usually because it was withdrawn or had become moot. It says more about procedure than about whether a claim like this can win.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Veteran's other specified depressive disorder is rated at 70 percent, but no higher, for the entire appeal period.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to a lack of VA examination and insufficient evidence to verify the Veteran's reported stressors. The Veteran is seeking service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, including PTSD, other specified trauma related disorder, and other specified depressive disorder.
- Granted
The Veteran's other specified depressive disorder is granted an initial 70 percent disability rating, effective July 26, 2022.
- Dismissed
The Veteran withdrew their appeal concerning the issue of entitlement to an initial rating in excess of 50 percent for other specified depressive disorder.
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