The Board denied the appellant's eligibility for direct payment of attorney fees from past due benefits awarded in a February 2024 rating decision granting a 100 percent rating for PTSD from May 2023.
The deciding factor: The February 2024 rating decision was considered an initial adjudication of an original claim, not a supplemental claim continuously pursuing a previously denied benefit.
- Claimed conditions
- PTSD, Major Depressive Disorder, Alcohol Use Disorder, Generalized Anxiety Disorder
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- May 27, 2025
- Citation
- A25047103
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder to ensure a proper examination and etiology opinion are provided.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for PTSD, generalized anxiety disorder, and somatic symptom disorder, as well as presumptive service connection for basal cell carcinoma under the PACT Act. Service connection was denied for chronic fatigue syndrome, irritable bowel syndrome, right restless leg syndrome, left restless leg syndrome, an increased rating for psychiatric disorder, bilateral hearing loss, a left forehead surgical scar, and allergic rhinitis.
- 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.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, including PTSD, as the Veteran did not have a diagnosis of PTSD or any other psychiatric disorder during the appeal period.
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