Citation Nr: 0810670 Decision Date: 04/01/08 Archive Date: 04/14/08 DOCKET NO. 05-19 563 ) DATE ) ) On appeal from the Department of Veterans Affairs Regional Office in Buffalo, New York THE ISSUES 1. Entitlement to service connection for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). 2. Entitlement to service connection for degenerative disease, right knee. REPRESENTATION Appellant represented by: The American Legion ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD S. Finn, Associate Counsel INTRODUCTION The veteran served on active duty from October 5, 1971 to October 20, 1972 in the United States Air Force. This matter has come before the Board of Veterans' Appeals (Board) on appeal from an August 2004 rating decision of the Buffalo, New York Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO). The veteran requested a hearing before the Board. The hearing was scheduled for June 6, 2006. The veteran and his representative failed to show for the hearing. The veteran nor his representative have expressed a desire to reschedule the hearing. Therefore, the Board will treat the request for a hearing as withdrawn. The appeal is REMANDED to the RO via the Appeals Management Center (AMC), in Washington, DC. VA will notify the veteran if further action is required. REMAND After a careful review of the claims folder, the Board finds that the veteran's claim must be remanded for further action. During the pendency of this appeal, on March 3, 2006, the Court issued a decision in the consolidated appeal of Dingess/Hartman v. Nicholson, 19 Vet. App. 473 (2006), which held that the VCAA notice requirements of 38 U.S.C.A. § 5103(a) and 38 C.F.R. § 3.159(b) apply to all five elements of a service connection claim. Those five elements include: 1) veteran status; 2) existence of a disability; (3) a connection between the veteran's service and the disability; 4) degree of disability; and 5) effective date of the disability. The Court held that, upon receipt of an application for a service connection claim, 38 U.S.C.A. § 5103(a) and 38 C.F.R. § 3.159(b) require VA to review the information and the evidence presented with the claim and to provide the claimant with notice of what information and evidence not previously provided, if any, will assist in substantiating or is necessary to substantiate the elements of the claim as reasonably contemplated by the application. Id. at 486. Additionally, this notice must state that a disability rating and an effective date for the award of benefits will be assigned if service connection is granted. Id. In the present appeal, the veteran received VCAA notice letters in April 2004 and April 2005. These letters failed to provide notice of the type of evidence necessary to establish a disability rating and an effective date for the claims on appeal. Thus, the notice requirement of Dingess has not been satisfied. Here, the claims file does not contain the veteran's personnel records. The Board finds that reasonable efforts should be undertaken to obtain personnel records. Further, the veteran described medical treatment from Laredo, Texas for his mental condition, and from Lackland Air Force Base, in San Antonio, Texas for his right knee condition. Also, it appears from a VA treatment record, dated in September 2002, that the veteran was treated for a major depressive episode in 1991 at St. Francis in Olean. However, the information of record does not indicate that VA has made an attempt to obtain these records. Efforts must be made to obtain such records, pursuant to 38 C.F.R. §3.159(c)(2). Further, the veteran is in receipt of disability benefit from the Social Security Administration (SSA), as indicated from the VA treatment record dated September 13, 2002. However, the record does not reflect that efforts have been made to obtain the corresponding SSA records. Such efforts are required, pursuant to 38 C.F.R. § 3.159(c)(2) (2007). See also Baker v. West, 11 Vet. App. 163, 169 (1998) (VA's duty to assist includes obtaining SSA records when the veteran reports receiving SSA disability benefits, as such records may contain relevant evidence). Accordingly, the case is REMANDED for the following action: 1. The RO should send the veteran and his representative a letter that complies with the notification requirements of 38 U.S.C.A. § 5103(a) and 38 C.F.R. § 3.159(b). Specifically, the letter should contain an explanation as to the information or evidence needed to establish a disability rating and effective date for the claims on appeal, as outlined by the Court in Dingess v. Nicholson, 19 Vet. App. 473 (2007). 2. After securing any necessary release forms, with full address information, all records of medical treatment which are not currently associated with the veteran's claims file should be requested. All records obtained pursuant to this request must be included in the veteran's claims file. If the search for such records has negative results, documentation to that effect should be included in the claims file. 3. The RO should contact the National Personnel Records Center (NPRC) and request a search for any and all records, medical and personnel, if available. 4. The RO should also contact the United States Air Force Military Personnel Center (AFPC), for any information they may have regarding the veteran. Any information obtained is to be associated with the claims folder. If the search efforts for these records have negative results, documentation from that facility, to that effect, should be placed in the claims folder. 5. The Social Security Administration should be contacted, and all medical records associated with the veteran's award of disability benefits should be requested. All records obtained pursuant to this request must be included in the veteran's claims file. If the search for such records has negative results, documentation to that effect should be included in the claims file. 6. The RO should ask the veteran to provide more specific information regarding his reported stressful events during service. This includes supporting details such as the specific location, name of any individuals involved, and time frames during which the claimed incidents occurred (preferably, within no more than a 60-day time period for each claimed incident). 7. Please advise the veteran that he can also submit "buddy statements" containing information that may verify the events that the veteran has alleged as "stressors" during his military service. Please advise the veteran that this information is vitally necessary in order to obtain supportive evidence of the claimed stressful events he experienced; without which, his claim may be denied. 8. The RO is asked to review the file and prepare a summary of all of the veteran's alleged in-service stressors (along with the places, dates, location and unit assignments). This summary, as well as any additional information obtained from the veteran concerning his alleged stressors and any relevant information from his service personnel records, should be sent to the U. S. Army and Joint Services Records Research Center (JSRRC), requesting that an attempt be made to independently verify the claimed stressors. The JSRRC should be requested to provide any additional information that might corroborate the veteran's alleged stressors. 9. If, and only if, a stressor is verified, then the veteran should be afforded a VA psychiatric examination to determine the nature and etiology of any psychiatric disability found to be present. The RO is to inform the examiner of the stressor(s) designated as verified, and that only the verified stressor(s) may be used as a basis for a diagnosis of PTSD. The claims folder and a separate copy of this remand should be made available to and reviewed by the examiner, and the examiner is asked to acknowledge such review in the examination report. All necessary tests should be conducted, and the examiner is asked to provide an opinion as to whether the veteran's meets the criteria for a diagnosis of PTSD. The examination report should contain a detailed account of all manifestations of any psychiatric disability found to be present. The examiner should provide a complete rationale for any opinions provided. If the examiner diagnoses the veteran as having PTSD, then the examiner should indicate the verified stressor(s) underlying that diagnosis. The report of the psychiatric examination should be associated with the veteran's claims folder. The veteran is hereby advised that failure to report for any scheduled VA examination without good cause shown may result in the denial of the original claim for service connection. 10. Thereafter, the RO should readjudicate the claims for service connection for PTSD and for a right knee disability, to include degenerative disease of the right knee, in light of the additional evidence obtained. If these claims are not granted to the veteran's satisfaction, then send him and his representative a Supplemental Statement of the Case and give them an opportunity to respond before transferring the case to the Board. The appellant has the right to submit additional evidence and argument on the matter or matters the Board has remanded. Kutscherousky v. West, 12 Vet. App. 369 (1999). This claim must be afforded expeditious treatment. The law requires that all claims that are remanded by the Board of Veterans' Appeals or by the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims for additional development or other appropriate action must be handled in an expeditious manner. See 38 U.S.C.A. §§ 5109B, 7112 (West Supp. 2007). _________________________________________________ DEBORAH W. SINGLETON Veterans Law Judge, Board of Veterans' Appeals