Citation Nr: 0813807 Decision Date: 04/25/08 Archive Date: 05/01/08 DOCKET NO. 03-34 191 ) DATE ) ) On appeal from the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO) in Muskogee, Oklahoma THE ISSUE 1. Entitlement to service connection for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). 2. Entitlement to service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, other than PTSD, to include depression and/or dysthymic disorder. REPRESENTATION Veteran represented by: Oklahoma Department of Veterans Affairs ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD Lawrence W. Klute, Associate Counsel INTRODUCTION The veteran served on active duty from July 1980 to July 1983. Procedural history This case comes before the Board of Veterans Appeals (the Board) on appeal from November 2002 and April 2003 rating decisions of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office in Muskogee, Oklahoma (the RO). The RO received the veteran's informal claim for service connection for PTSD in November 2001. The veteran's formal claim was subsequently received in January 2002. In a November 2002 rating decision, the RO denied the claim of service connection for PTSD. In February 2003, the veteran submitted a request to the RO to amend her claim to include the issue of service connection for depression. In an April 2003 rating decision, the RO denied the veteran's claims of service connection for PTSD and service connection for depression. The veteran disagreed with the April 2003 rating decision and filed a Notice of Disagreement (NOD), received at the RO in May 2003. The RO issued a Statement of the Case (SOC) in October 2003 which addressed only the issue of service connection for PTSD. The appeal was perfected with the timely submission of the veteran's substantive appeal (VA Form 9) in November 2003. In an August 2005 decision, the Board denied service connection for PTSD. The veteran appealed the Board's denial of service connection for PTSD to the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims (Court). Pursuant to a July 2007 memorandum decision, the Court set aside the Board's August 2005 decision denying service connection for PTSD and remanded the case for further adjudication consistent with its decision, specifically to obtain the veteran's Social Security Administration (SSA) records. Also in August 2005, the Board remanded the issue of entitlement to service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder other than PTSD for issuance of a statement of the case (SOC). The SOC was sent to the veteran on December 18, 2006, and the veteran filed a timely substantive appeal (VA Form 9) on February 15, 2007. This case is REMANDED to the RO via the VA Appeals Management Center (AMC) in Washington, D.C. REMAND As was alluded to above, in its July 10, 2007 memorandum decision the Court in essence directed the Board to obtain the veteran's SSA records. The Court also referred to the veteran's contention that the issue of entitlement to service connection for an acquired psychiatric disability other than PTSD was inextricably intertwined with the PTSD issue. The Board is also including that issue in this remand. Accordingly, the case is REMANDED to the Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA) for the following action: 1. VBA should request SSA to provide copies of any records pertaining to the veteran's application for SSA disability benefits, to include any medical records obtained in connection with the application. Any materials obtained should be associated with the veteran's VA claims folder. 2. After undertaking any additional development which it deems to be appropriate, VBA should then readjudicate the veteran's claims of entitlement to service connection for PTSD and entitlement to service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder other than PTSD. If the benefits sought on appeal are denied, in whole or in part, VBA should provide the veteran and her representative with a supplemental statement of the case and allow an appropriate period of time for response. The case should then be returned to the Board for further consideration, if otherwise in order. The veteran has the right to submit additional evidence and argument on the 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 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). _________________________________________________ Barry F. Bohan Veterans Law Judge, Board of Veterans' Appeals Under 38 U.S.C.A. § 7252 (West 2002), only a decision of the Board of Veterans' Appeals is appealable to the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims. This remand is in the nature of a preliminary order and does not constitute a decision of the Board on the merits of your appeal. 38 C.F.R. § 20.1100(b) (2007).