The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date and higher initial rating for major depressive disorder was denied. The Board found that the earliest effective date for service connection is June 17, 2009, as no correspondence prior to this date can be construed as a formal or informal claim. The Veteran's TDIU claim was granted due to his service-connected depression preventing him from securing and following substantially gainful employment.
The deciding factor: The evidence did not demonstrate total occupational and social impairment required for a higher rating, but the Veteran's depression prevented him from obtaining or maintaining substantially gainful employment.
- Claimed conditions
- major depressive disorder
- How they argued it
- Reopened with new and material evidence
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 70%
- Decision date
- August 2, 2019
- Citation
- 19160218
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 19160218.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Dismissed
The claim for an earlier effective date for service connection for major depressive disorder is dismissed as moot because the earliest effective date was granted during the pendency of this appeal.
- Granted
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- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for right and left hip degenerative arthritis as secondary to the Veteran's service-connected right ankle and knee conditions, and major depressive disorder as secondary to his service-connected knee and ankle conditions. The Board also granted a 10 percent rating for allergic rhinitis.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for major depressive disorder as secondary to the Veteran's service-connected tinnitus.
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