The Board denied service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, finding that the Veteran's current diagnosis of bipolar disorder did not clearly and unmistakably pre-exist his active military service.,The Board also denied service connection for the cause of death by suicide, concluding that the Veteran's bipolar disorder was related to service but contributed to his death.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner concluded that the Veteran’s current diagnosis of bipolar disorder did not clearly and unmistakably pre-exist his active military service. The Board found this opinion highly persuasive.,The VA examiner also determined that the Veteran's bipolar disorder was related to service but contributed to his death by suicide.
- Claimed conditions
- Acquired psychiatric disorder, Bipolar Disorder
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- September 26, 2019
- Citation
- 19174958
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 19174958.
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.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, finding a causal relationship between the condition and an in-service incident of military sexual trauma (MST).
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for varicose veins in the bilateral lower extremities and dismissed the appeal for an acquired psychiatric disorder due to untimely notice of disagreement. The lumbar spine disability claim was remanded for further development.
- Partly granted
The Board denied service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder and remanded the claims for a right knee condition, left knee condition, and low back condition.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the issue of entitlement to service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder due to a pre-decisional duty to assist error.
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