The Board has granted service connection for acquired psychiatric disorders, diagnosed as depressive disorder and anxiety disorder, finding that the evidence is at least evenly balanced in favor of the Veteran's claim. The decision resolves reasonable doubt in favor of the Veteran.
The deciding factor: The Board found that the evidence was approximately evenly balanced regarding whether the Veteran’s depression and anxiety were related to his service, including an incident on a ship where he was stuck inside for two days during rising waters from a flooded shaft alley.
- Claimed conditions
- depressive disorder, anxiety disorder
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 12, 2019
- Citation
- 19185149
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.
- Granted
The Board granted a disability rating of 50 percent for the Veteran's acquired psychiatric disorder, characterized as depressive disorder, effective May 1, 2017.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for depression, PTSD, and an anxiety disorder due to the lack of a current diagnosis.
- Partly granted
The Board dismissed the appeal for service connection for anxiety disorder and denied service connection for hearing loss. The claims for service connection for GERD, right ankle limitations, and sinusitis were remanded for further development.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board dismissed the appeal for a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disability (TDIU) and remanded several issues related to increased ratings for various disabilities.
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This is general information, not legal advice. For advice about your own situation, talk to a VA-accredited representative — many help for free.