The Veteran's psychiatric disorder, including major depressive disorder and anxiety disorder, was not incurred or aggravated during service. The Board found clear and unmistakable evidence that the preexisting condition existed prior to service.,The Veteran’s alcohol use disorder is considered a result of his own willful misconduct and was not caused by military service.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's psychiatric disorders were determined to be pre-existing conditions that did not worsen during service, while his alcohol use disorder was attributed to his own behavior.
- Claimed conditions
- {"condition_name":"Psychiatric Disorder (including major depressive disorder and anxiety disorder)"}, {"condition_name":"Alcohol Use Disorder"}, {"condition_name":"Chronic Migraines"}
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 7, 2020
- Citation
- A20017977
What this means for you
A remand is not a loss. The Board sent the case back for more development — often a new exam or missing records — before making a final decision. Many remands later end in a grant, and the decision spells out exactly what the Board wanted to see.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
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- Granted
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