The Board granted service connection for drug abuse secondary to the Veteran's service-connected unspecified mood disorder.
The deciding factor: The evidence supports that the Veteran's substance abuse disorder resulted in part from symptoms of his service-connected unspecified mood disorder, satisfying the criteria for entitlement to service connection on a secondary basis.
- Claimed conditions
- drug abuse
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 100%
- Decision date
- May 15, 2025
- Citation
- 25006617
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.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for cervicalgia, jaw disability, stomach disability, and drug abuse as the evidence did not support a finding of an in-service incurrence or aggravation of these conditions.
- Dismissed
The appeal for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder is dismissed as the Board granted service connection in January 2025, making the issue moot.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for service connection for drug abuse, including as secondary to unspecified mood disorder, for further development and readjudication.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for service connection of PTSD with bruxism prior to April 14, 2021.
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