The Board denied a rating in excess of 50 percent for the Veteran's PTSD, finding that his symptoms did not meet the criteria for a higher disability rating due to occupational and social impairment with reduced reliability and productivity.
The deciding factor: The evidence showed that while the Veteran had some symptoms consistent with a higher disability rating (such as suicidal ideation), these were infrequent and did not cause deficiencies in most areas such as work, school, family relations, thinking or judgment. The VA examiners and private practitioners who provided evaluations did not find these symptoms indicative of occupational and social impairment with deficiencies in most areas.
- Claimed conditions
- Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Depressive Disorder, Alcohol Use Disorder
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 50%
- Decision date
- October 28, 2020
- Citation
- 20069933
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,934 · Granted: 41% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)
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 20069933.
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 an effective date prior to December 27, 2019 for the grant of service connection for PTSD was denied as there is no earlier claim document in the claims file and the Veteran did not timely perfect an appeal.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeal for service connection for PTSD has been dismissed as the claim was granted and effective from February 22, 2023.
- Granted
The Veteran's psychiatric disorder, specifically depressive disorder, is rated at 70 percent effective from August 3, 2021. The claim for a higher rating remains denied.
- Granted
The Veteran's PTSD is related to fear of hostile military or terrorist activity in Vietnam, and his alcohol use disorder is due to his PTSD. Service connection for PTSD with alcohol use disorder has been granted.
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