The Board granted service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, diagnosed as major depressive disorder and schizophrenia, finding that the Veteran's symptoms are related to his active service.
The deciding factor: The private medical opinion provided by a clinical psychologist was deemed more probative than previous VA examiner opinions due to its thorough review of the record and clear conclusions supporting the diagnosis of an acquired psychiatric disorder during service.
- Claimed conditions
- Major Depressive Disorder, Schizophrenia
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 29, 2025
- Citation
- A25039324
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.
- Granted
The Veteran was granted a disability rating of 70 percent for posttraumatic stress disorder and major depressive disorder, effective October 24, 2017. The Board also granted a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disability due to the need for a more comprehensive medical examination and opinion.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, right hand tremors, left hand tremors, gout, and chronic kidney disease to obtain outstanding VA treatment records and provide a medical examination.
- Denied
The Board denied an initial disability rating in excess of 50 percent for the Veteran's acquired psychiatric disorder prior to September 10, 2022, and in excess of 70 percent thereafter.
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