The Board has remanded the case due to inadequate reasons and bases for its May 2018 decision, including failure to obtain all available treatment records from the Marianna VA Community-Based Outpatient Clinic (CBOC) and failure to provide adequate reasons for finding no current PTSD or bipolar disorder. The Veteran's service includes a period of active duty from September 1989 to January 1990, a period of active duty for training from May 19, 1990, to July 19, 1990, and a period of active duty from June 1992 to October 1992. The Veteran contends that he has a psychiatric disorder related to his service in Southwest Asia.
The deciding factor: The Board failed to provide adequate reasons or bases for why it found no current PTSD or bipolar disorder because it did not explain the weight given to the December 2010 diagnosis of PTSD and bipolar disorder, nor discussed bipolar disorder diagnoses noted in the Veteran's medical records in March and September 2012.
- Claimed conditions
- Personality Disorder, Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Bipolar Disorder
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 2, 2020
- Citation
- 20064264
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for a rating in excess of 70 percent for PTSD due to an inadequate medical opinion.
- Granted
The Board granted an effective date of February 21, 2007, for the award of service connection for PTSD and major depressive disorder with anxious distress.
- Granted
The Board granted a rating of 70 percent for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and traumatic brain injury (TBI), as the Veteran's symptoms most nearly approximated occupational and social impairment with deficiencies in most areas.
- Granted
The Board granted a disability rating of 70 percent for PTSD and a total disability rating due to individual unemployability (TDIU) based on the Veteran's service-connected disabilities.
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