The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection and secondary service connection for his acquired psychiatric disorder, finding that there was no evidence to support a direct or secondary relationship between his current condition and his active-duty service or any service-connected disabilities.
The deciding factor: The VA psychologist provided negative opinions regarding both direct and secondary service connection, citing the Veteran's lack of mention of his claimed disabilities impacting his mental health at the time of the examination and noting that the onset of the Veteran's persistent depressive disorder was related to marital separation in the 2000s.
- Claimed conditions
- unspecified depressive disorder, anxiety, alcohol dependency
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 14, 2022
- Citation
- 22002244
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 22002244.
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient medical opinion regarding the nature and etiology of the Veteran's psychiatric condition, including PTSD, depression, and anxiety. The Veteran is seeking service connection for these conditions.
- Granted
The Board has granted the claims for service connection for anxiety, depression, and an acquired psychiatric disorder (including PTSD), finding that new and relevant evidence supports these claims.
- Denied
The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for tinnitus and anxiety, finding that there is no evidence of an in-service incurrence or onset of these conditions.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the case due to a duty to assist error, requiring an additional medical opinion regarding the etiology of the Veteran's acquired psychiatric disorder.
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