The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for PTSD and a psychiatric disability other than PTSD, to include anxiety and depression. The most probative evidence does not establish that the Veteran meets the diagnostic criteria for PTSD or that his current psychiatric disabilities are causally related to his active service.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner concluded that the Veteran did not meet the criteria for a diagnosis of PTSD under DSM-5, concluding instead that diagnoses of other specified anxiety disorder and alcohol use disorder in full remission were appropriate. The examiner found the Veteran's allegations concerning combat-related stressors not fully credible and noted that his current psychiatric symptoms were due to post-service legal problems, family issues, and financial stress.
- Claimed conditions
- Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Anxiety, Depression
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 26, 2019
- Citation
- 19188675
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,810 · Granted: 23% (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 19188675.
What this means for you
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What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Veteran's claim for service connection for PTSD is granted as the evidence shows a current diagnosis of PTSD, an in-service stressor, and a medical link between the two.
- Denied
The Veteran's PTSD has been rated at 50% since March 23, 2004. The Board found that a higher rating is not warranted prior to February 15, 2005 due to the severity of his symptoms and their impact on his social and occupational functioning.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for PTSD and any acquired psychiatric disorder, finding that there was no evidence to support a link between his current mental health conditions and his military service.
- Granted
The Veteran's PTSD resulted in occupational and social impairment with reduced reliability and productivity, warranting a 70% disability rating. The Veteran also met the criteria for a TDIU due to his service-connected disabilities preventing him from securing or following a substantially gainful occupation.
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