The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder (including PTSD) as there was no credible evidence of a stressor and the preponderance of the evidence did not support a finding that the condition began during active service or is otherwise related to an in-service injury or disease.
The deciding factor: The Board found that there was insufficient competent medical evidence to establish the occurrence of the claimed in-service stressor, which is required for service connection under 38 C.F.R. § 3.304(f).
- Claimed conditions
- acquired psychiatric disorder (including post-traumatic stress disorder)
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 15, 2019
- Citation
- 19186275
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 3,319 · Granted: 25% (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 19186275.
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has denied the Veteran's request for an earlier effective date for a 70 percent rating for bilateral hearing loss. The claims of service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder and left lower extremity radiculopathy are remanded due to insufficient evidence.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claims for service connection are remanded due to the need for additional medical opinions regarding his bilateral eye disability, acquired psychiatric disorder, and Barrett’s esophagus. The issues of service connection will be reconsidered based on the new evidence provided.
- Denied
The Board has denied the veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, carpal tunnel syndrome, and an acquired psychiatric disorder (including post-traumatic stress disorder) due to lack of evidence demonstrating a nexus between these conditions and her military service.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for a low back disability and the veteran's claim to reopen was also denied. The VA examiner found no link between any event of service origin and post-service degenerative disc disease at L5-S1 and a herniated disc at L4-L5.
Free starter guide for your own claim
Reading this because you were denied or under-rated? Get the plain-English next steps — your appeal options, the deadline that protects you, and how appeals like yours turn out. One email, no spam.
We will only use this to send the guide. No spam, unsubscribe any time. We never sell your information.
We are not the VA. Veterans’ Rights is an independent resource built for veterans. We are not the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, not part of the government, and not endorsed by any government agency.
This is general information, not legal advice. For advice about your own situation, talk to a VA-accredited representative — many help for free.