The Board granted service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, to include depressive disorder and anxiety disorder, finding that these conditions are secondary to pain from the Veteran's service-connected right knee disability.
The deciding factor: The March 2021 VA psychiatrist opined that the Veteran's anxiety disorder appears to stem out of his military service, while the February 2023 private opinion suggested his condition is a direct result of combat experiences in Iraq. The Board resolved any doubt in favor of the Veteran.
- Claimed conditions
- Anxiety Disorder, Depressive Disorder
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 8, 2025
- Citation
- A25042000
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,861 · Granted: 27% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
This is a plain-language summary generated by AI from a public Board of Veterans’ Appeals decision. It can contain errors — always verify against the original. Look up the original decision on VA.gov (opens in a new tab) using citation A25042000.
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 Veteran's initial ratings for anxiety disorder and TBI were denied as the evidence did not meet the criteria for a higher rating.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeal for service connection for PTSD has been dismissed as the claim was granted and effective from February 22, 2023.
- Denied
The Board denied eligibility to attorney fees based on past-due benefits awarded in a March 2024 rating decision because the March 2024 rating decision was an initial decision granting service connection for anxiety disorder.
- Granted
The Veteran's psychiatric disorder, specifically depressive disorder, is rated at 70 percent effective from August 3, 2021. The claim for a higher rating remains denied.
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