The Board remands the claim for service connection for depressive disorder and alcohol abuse to correct predecisional duty to assist errors.
The deciding factor: The Board finds that a remand is necessary due to contradictory reports of in-service treatment and lacks sufficient evidence to determine credibility, thus requiring further efforts to obtain clinical records of purported mental health treatment over a six month period at Keesler Air Force Base.
- Claimed conditions
- Depressive disorder, Alcohol abuse
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 16, 2024
- Citation
- A24066458
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 Veteran's claims for additional VA examinations to properly evaluate the current severity of her disabilities.
- Partly granted
The Veteran's depressive disorder was granted a 70 percent disability rating from April 27, 2020 to August 15, 2022, and a TDIU was also granted.
- Granted
The Board granted an effective date of July 14, 2020, for the grant of service connection for IVDS with spinal fusion and lumbar disc disease with stenosis, as well as associated radiculopathy of the sciatic and femoral nerves of the left and right lower extremities, and depressive disorder.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the case to verify periods of active duty, ACDUTRA, or INACDUTRA from 1998 to 2006 and to obtain a new VA examination.
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