The appeal for a higher rating for PTSD was denied, while an earlier effective date of special monthly compensation (SMC) from September 25, 2020, was granted.
The deciding factor: The evidence did not support a finding of total occupational and social impairment to warrant a higher rating for PTSD; however, the Veteran's inability to secure and follow substantially gainful employment due to his PTSD alone justified an earlier effective date for SMC.
- Claimed conditions
- Posttraumatic stress disorder with major depressive disorder, Traumatic brain injury (TBI), Post-concussion vertigo, Insomnia
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 70%
- Decision date
- June 25, 2025
- Citation
- A25054640
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,035 · Granted: 30% (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 A25054640.
What this means for you
A partial grant means some issues were granted while others were denied or remanded — common in multi-issue claims. Look at which issues went which way, and how each was argued.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Veteran's service connection claims for traumatic brain injury and migraine headaches due to right eye removal are granted. The claim for a compensable evaluation of xeroderma of the right eye is remanded.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to an inadequate opinion regarding the relationship between any current acquired psychiatric disorder and service, specifically a claimed in-service personal assault. The Veteran's contentions are that he did not report or seek treatment for this assault because he feared it would complicate his discharge.
- Denied
The Veteran's claim for a separate disability rating for insomnia is denied as it is subsumed under his service-connected PTSD.,The effective date for the grant of service connection for PTSD is denied as no new and material evidence was submitted within one year of the July 1986 denial, making the June 9, 2017, claim without legal merit.,The effective date for the grant of service connection for OSA is denied as no new and material evidence was submitted within one year of the April 2013 denial, making the June 9, 2017, claim without legal merit.
- Denied
The Veteran's claim for service connection for gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) was denied because the disability is not shown as chronic in service and did not manifest to a compensable degree within the applicable presumptive period; continuity of symptomatology is not established; and the disability is not otherwise etiologically related to an in-service injury or disease.,The Veteran's claim for service connection for a lumbar spine disability was denied because the disability was not shown as chronic in service and did not manifest to a compensable degree within the applicable presumptive period; continuity of symptomatology is not established; and the disability is not otherwise etiologically related to an in-service injury or disease.,The Veteran's claim for service connection for a traumatic brain injury (TBI) was denied because there is no evidence of loss of consciousness or memory impairment following the motor vehicle accident during service, and post-service VA treatment records do not show a diagnosis of TBI.
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