The Board denied service connection for anxiety disorder and remanded claims for major depressive disorder, PTSD disability, and alcohol use disorder due to inadequate medical opinions.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner's opinion regarding the Veteran's major depressive disorder was found inadequate because it relied on the absence of documentation in the service treatment records without considering lay statements. The Board also found that the examiners' conclusions about the Veteran's PTSD disability were inadequate as they failed to consider relevant medical evidence.
- Claimed conditions
- anxiety disorder, major depressive disorder, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), alcohol use disorder
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 11, 2025
- Citation
- A25033839
What this means for you
A partial grant means some issues were granted while others were denied or remanded — common in multi-issue claims. Look at which issues went which way, and how each was argued.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Partly granted
The Veteran was granted a 70 percent initial disability rating for PTSD effective December 2, 2021, but the claim for an increased rating in excess of 70 percent was denied. The appeal also included claims for service connection and ratings for various conditions, some of which were granted while others were remanded.
- Dismissed
The claim for an earlier effective date for service connection for major depressive disorder is dismissed as moot because the earliest effective date was granted during the pendency of this appeal.
- Granted
The Board granted an effective date of October 17, 2022, for the grant of service connection for PTSD.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for headaches and increased ratings for left shoulder rotator cuff tear, right shoulder rotator cuff tear, hypertension, and left and right leg restless leg syndrome. The Board denied a compensable rating for bilateral hearing loss and an initial rating in excess of 70 percent for posttraumatic stress disorder.
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