The Board denied the Veteran's appeal for an initial rating greater than 30 percent for adjustment disorder, finding that his symptoms did not meet the criteria for a higher rating.
The deciding factor: The VA clinician's examination report indicated only occasional decrease in work efficiency and intermittent periods of inability to perform occupational tasks, while the private opinion described more severe impairment but lacked medical justification for its conclusions.
- Claimed conditions
- Adjustment Disorder with Anxiety and Depressed Mood
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 28, 2025
- Citation
- A25038719
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.
- Denied
The Board denied an initial rating in excess of 70 percent for adjustment disorder with anxiety and depressed mood, finding that the Veteran's symptoms did not more nearly approximate total occupational and social impairment.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the case for further development, specifically to address the Veteran's capacity to engage in conversation due to his service-connected hearing loss.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for service connection for acquired psychiatric disorder, to include PTSD, MDD, and adjustment disorder with anxiety and depressed mood due to an inadequate VA examination.
- Partly granted
The claim for service connection for adjustment disorder with anxiety and depressed mood was denied because the evidence submitted is not new and relevant. The claim for migraines to include cluster headaches was remanded for further review.
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