The Veteran's service connection claim for opioid use disorder and alcohol use disorder is denied as he does not have a current diagnosis of a psychiatric disorder other than opioid use disorder and alcohol use disorder, which are not disabilities for which service connection may be granted.
The deciding factor: The Veteran does not have a primary psychiatric disorder that can be linked to his military service.
- Claimed conditions
- opioid use disorder, alcohol use disorder
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 10, 2019
- Citation
- 19144669
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,911 · Granted: 10% (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 19144669.
What this means for you
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What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Veteran's service-connected PTSD, major depression, generalized anxiety disorder, insomnia and alcohol use disorder caused his sleep apnea.
- Granted
The Veteran's service-connected adjustment disorder with mixed anxiety and depressed mood, along with alcohol use disorder, has been granted a 100% evaluation effective from April 8, 2021. The disability causes total occupational and social impairment.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, including PTSD and alcohol use disorder, finding that there is no current diagnosis of PTSD and that the Veteran's only diagnosed condition is alcohol use disorder. The Board also found that service connection cannot be granted due to willful misconduct.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claims, including his request for a higher level review of the August 26, 2022 decision denying his claim of clear and unmistakable error in an August 16, 2013 rating decision, are being remanded. The AOJ must address whether the September 8, 2021 decision addressed his April 21, 2022 claim for a CUE.
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