The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disability, finding that his current psychiatric disorder is not related to his military service and does not meet the criteria for secondary or aggravation service connection.
The deciding factor: The VA addendum opinion found no evidence of a relationship between the Veteran’s psychiatric disorder and his military service, and concluded that the Veteran's psychiatric symptoms were present before service and have persisted since then without any causal link to service.
- Claimed conditions
- depressive disorder, anxiety
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 17, 2020
- Citation
- 20004269
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 remands the claim for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder to ensure a proper examination and etiology opinion are provided.
- Remanded (sent back)
The appeal is remanded for further development and consideration of the Veteran's claims for service connection for various acquired psychiatric disorders.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the veteran's claims for service connection for various conditions, including back pain, knee and wrist joint pains, neck pain, anxiety, depression, as further development is needed to properly adjudicate these claims.
- 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.
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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.