The Veteran's acquired psychiatric disability, diagnosed as GAD and MDD with secondary alcohol abuse disorder is granted. The Board finds the evidence at least evenly balanced in support of this claim.
The deciding factor: The private medical opinion from Dr. A-S supports a relationship to service for GAD and MDD with alcohol abuse as a secondary disorder.
- Claimed conditions
- GAD, MDD with secondary alcohol abuse disorder
- How they argued it
- Reopened with new and material evidence
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 60%
- Decision date
- March 17, 2026
- Citation
- A26023936
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 A26023936.
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.
- Dismissed
The Board dismissed the appeal for an earlier effective date for the grant of a TDIU due to service-connected disabilities because the issue was not adjudicated in prior decisions and the Veteran did not pursue it after being granted service connection for GAD.
- Granted
The Board has granted an effective date of February 15, 2024 for the award of service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder (including GAD and persistent depressive disorder). This decision is based on continuous pursuit of claims by the Veteran.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for an acquired psychiatric disability, including PTSD, MDD, and GAD, based on the Veteran's in-service exposure to traumatic events at Guantanamo Bay.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for a higher rating for GAD and TDIU due to incomplete records from private treatment providers and SSA. The Veteran is requested to submit or authorize VA to obtain all outstanding private treatment records, including those from Southern Hill Hospital and TriStar Southern Hills Medical Center. Additionally, his complete SSA records are needed.
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