The Board denied service connection for a psychiatric disorder, specifically social phobia, as it was not incurred in or caused by the Veteran's active duty.
The deciding factor: The December 2023 VA examiner's opinion and the lack of evidence supporting the Veteran's claim led to the denial of service connection.
- Claimed conditions
- Social phobia
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 23, 2025
- Citation
- A25037220
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.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder and denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss. The claims for service connection for migraines and scars of the extremities/trunk were remanded.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claim for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disability, to include PTSD, due to a lack of credible evidence supporting his claimed in-service stressors and a diagnosis of PTSD that was not informed by the record.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for obstructive sleep apnea, effective from the date of the February 2025 rating decision.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for a medical examination to determine if the Veteran's current neck strain is related to his in-service activities.
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This is general information, not legal advice. For advice about your own situation, talk to a VA-accredited representative — many help for free.