The Veteran's claim for service connection for a psychiatric disability was denied as she did not have a service-connectable psychiatric disability at the time of her October 2010 claim and has not had one since. The Board also found that any current mental health issues, including anxiety and depression, are secondary to alcohol use disorder.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's mental health symptoms are attributed to her alcohol use disorder, which is considered a secondary condition to her service-connected disability (alcohol abuse).
- Claimed conditions
- Anxiety, Depression
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- February 10, 2021
- Citation
- 21007839
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 21007839.
What this means for you
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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 due to insufficient findings regarding PTSD and depression, requiring a new VA examination.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to errors in the AOJ's handling of the Veteran's claims for service connection for PTSD, other specified trauma and stressor-related disorder, and depression. The AOJ is required to verify the Veteran's claimed stressor and obtain medical opinions regarding the diagnoses and their relation to service.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Anxiety, and Depression as these conditions are found to be related to the Veteran's active military service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claim for a 70 percent disability rating for his psychiatric disorder, including PTSD with MDD and anxiety, has been granted. However, the issue of entitlement to Total Disability Rating Based on Individual Unemployability (TDIU) is remanded due to procedural issues.
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