The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, finding that there was no credible supporting evidence of in-service events or stressors and concluding that his current psychiatric disability is not related to military sexual trauma.
The deciding factor: The Board found that the Veteran did not have any in-service markers suggestive of MST suffered by the Veteran and noted inconsistencies between the Veteran's self-reported medical history and service records. The March 2020 VA examiner concluded that the Veteran’s psychiatric disability is not at least as likely as not related to his reported MST stressors.
- Claimed conditions
- affective mood disorder, delusional disorder, major depressive disorder, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- August 17, 2020
- Citation
- 20054244
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 20054244.
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.
- Denied
The Veteran's claim for specially-adapted housing assistance and a special home adaptation grant was denied because he does not meet the criteria for either benefit based on his service-connected disabilities.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient evidence regarding the Veteran's acquired psychiatric disorders, including bipolar disorder and PTSD. The Veteran will be asked to provide additional medical records and undergo a VA examination.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claim for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, including PTSD and major depressive disorder, is being remanded due to the need for additional development regarding his alleged stressors.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case for additional development regarding the Veteran's service connection claim for an acquired psychiatric disorder, including PTSD.
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