The Board has determined that the claim of an effective date prior to June 5, 2012 for service connection of depressive disorder is dismissed. The remaining issues on appeal are remanded due to procedural and evidentiary concerns.
The deciding factor: The appellant's attorney withdrew the earlier effective date claim, but the Board found it necessary to clarify that an increased rating for depression was not addressed in the October 2017 Statement of the Case. Further development is required regarding the Veteran’s bilateral hip disability and IVDS.
- Claimed conditions
- Depressive Disorder, not otherwise specified (NOS)
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 24, 2019
- Citation
- 19149095
What this means for you
A remand is not a loss. The Board sent the case back for more development — often a new exam or missing records — before making a final decision. Many remands later end in a grant, and the decision spells out exactly what the Board wanted to see.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Partly granted
The Board granted an initial increased rating of 50 percent for the Veteran's acquired psychiatric disability from March 8, 2010, to May 19, 2014, and denied a higher rating thereafter.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder of generalized anxiety disorder and depressive disorder, as secondary to the service-connected left ankle disability. Service connection was also granted for pseudofolliculitis barbae, and a 20 percent rating was assigned for left ankle achilles tendonitis from October 23, 2023.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for an acquired psychiatric disability, to include GAD and depressive disorder, as well as a cervical spine disability, right wrist pain, and left wrist pain. However, the claims for lumbar spine pain were denied.
- Denied
The Board denied a disability rating in excess of 50 percent and 70 percent for an acquired psychiatric disability, including PTSD, depressive disorder, trauma and stressor related disorder, personality disorder, alcohol use disorder, and cannabis use disorder.
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