The Veteran's somatic symptom disorder with depressive disorder, unspecified, and anxious distress resulted in occupational and social impairment with deficiencies in areas of work, family relations, judgment, and mood. The Board granted an initial disability rating of 70 percent for this condition.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's symptoms included difficulty understanding complex commands, impaired short-term and long-term memory, disturbances of motivation and mood, and difficulty establishing effective work and social relationships, which more closely approximated the criteria for a 70 percent disability rating.
- Claimed conditions
- Somatic symptom disorder, Depressive disorder, unspecified, Anxious distress
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 70%
- Decision date
- April 8, 2026
- Citation
- A26032669
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 A26032669.
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.
- Granted
The Veteran's somatic symptom disorder has been granted a disability rating of 70 percent, but no higher. The severity, frequency, and duration of his mental health symptoms more closely approximate occupational and social impairment with deficiencies in most areas.
- Denied
The Veteran's service-connected psychiatric disability did not manifest by total occupational and social impairment, so the claim for a higher rating is denied.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the case due to an inadequate VA opinion and a failure to obtain relevant private treatment records. The Veteran's claim for service connection for his psychiatric disabilities will be reconsidered with new evidence.
- Denied
The Veteran's acquired psychiatric disorder, including major depressive disorder with anxious distress and cannabis use disorder, was manifested by symptoms resulting in occupational and social impairment. The Board found the evidence did not demonstrate total occupational and social impairment required for a higher rating.
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