The Board denied the Veteran's appeal for an earlier effective date of service connection for unspecified anxiety disorder with alcohol use disorder, assigning October 12, 2022 as the earliest possible effective date.
The deciding factor: The August 2024 rating decision assigned the earliest allowable effective date based on the intent to file a claim received in October 2022 and subsequent formal claim submitted within one year of that date.
- Claimed conditions
- unspecified anxiety disorder with alcohol use disorder
- How they argued it
- Reopened with new and material evidence
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 16, 2025
- Citation
- A25108558
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,156 · Granted: 29% (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 A25108558.
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 earlier effective date and a higher rating for the Veteran's unspecified anxiety disorder with alcohol use disorder, as well as remanded the claim for a total disability rating based on individual unemployability.
- Partly granted
The Board denied an initial rating in excess of 30 percent for unspecified anxiety disorder with alcohol use disorder prior to July 20, 2023, but granted a 30 percent rating for hiatal hernia with GERD and herpes simplex 1 esophagitis.
- Denied
The Veteran's appeal for an increased rating for service-connected unspecified anxiety disorder with alcohol use disorder was denied. The disability is currently rated at 30 percent, effective July 28, 2016.
- Granted
The Veteran's unspecified anxiety disorder with alcohol use disorder is rated at a 70 percent disability rating, effective December 2, 2014. The Board found that the symptoms more nearly approximated occupational and social impairment with deficiencies in most areas.
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