The Veteran's appeal for service connection for depression as secondary to gastroparesis and asthma has been dismissed. The claim of entitlement to compensation benefits pursuant to the provisions of 38 U.S.C. § 1151 for gastroparesis, status post-laparoscopic Nissen fundoplication is remanded.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's service connection claim was resolved by a September 2019 rating decision which granted service connection for major depressive disorder with anxious distress and somatic symptom disorder. This resolution of the depression claim on appeal means there remains no case or controversy affecting the provision of benefits by VA over which the Board may exercise jurisdiction.
- Claimed conditions
- depression, gastroparesis, asthma
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 15, 2020
- Citation
- 20034060
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 20034060.
What this means for you
A dismissal means the Board did not decide the issue on its merits — usually because it was withdrawn or had become moot. It says more about procedure than about whether a claim like this can win.
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 remanded the case for additional development, including obtaining in-service psychiatric treatment records and scheduling a VA examination to determine the nature and etiology of any acquired psychiatric disorder.
- Denied
The Veteran's depression was rated at 50 percent prior to July 1, 2016. The Board found that the evidence did not support a higher rating due to occupational and social impairment with reduced reliability and productivity. For TDIU, the Veteran had multiple service-connected disabilities but his education and work experience were sufficient for sedentary or light labor employment.
- Granted
The Veteran's depression was rated at 50 percent prior to September 27, 2017. From September 27, 2017, the rating for depression increased to 70 percent.
- Denied
The Veteran's respiratory disability, including asthma and COPD, is denied as service connection is not warranted due to the condition being solely attributed to smoking.
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