The Veteran's residuals of TBI with cognitive and psychiatric manifestations resulted in reduced reliability and productivity, warranting a 50% disability rating from October 23, 2008 to November 28, 2016. The current ratings under DC 9304 are replaced by the 50% rating granted herein.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's cognitive and psychiatric symptoms resulted in reduced reliability and productivity, meeting the criteria for a 50% disability rating under Diagnostic Code (DC) 9304.
- Claimed conditions
- Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI), Persistent Depressive Disorder
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 50%
- Decision date
- October 27, 2020
- Citation
- 20069373
Veterans Law Judge
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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 20069373.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for a traumatic brain injury (TBI) and its residuals, including unsteady gait, somnolence, and cognitive dysfunction. The decision is based on the Veteran's credible lay statements about in-service head injuries and subsequent seizures.
- Denied
The Board has determined that the Veteran does not have a current diagnosis of Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) and therefore, service connection for TBI is denied.
- Granted
The Veteran's claim for service connection for persistent depressive disorder with anxious distress was granted, effective January 17, 2024. The Board has now granted an earlier effective date of May 31, 2019.
- Granted
The Veteran's persistent depressive disorder is rated at 70 percent, the highest available rating under the General Formula for Mental Disorders. The other issues have been denied.
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