Citation Nr: 1319353 Decision Date: 06/14/13 Archive Date: 06/21/13 DOCKET NO. 10-22 777 ) DATE ) ) On appeal from the Department of Veterans Affairs Regional Office in Oakland, California THE ISSUE Entitlement to an initial disability evaluation for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) with secondary depression in excess of 30 percent prior to October 1, 2012, and 50 percent thereafter. REPRESENTATION Appellant represented by: California Department of Veterans Affairs ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD M. Sopko, Associate Counsel INTRODUCTION The Veteran had active military service from December 1968 to July 1970. This matter is before the Board of Veterans' Appeals (Board) on appeal from an August 2008 rating decision of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO) in Oakland, California. The Veteran was granted service connection for his PTSD in August 2008. This disability was rated as 30 percent disabling, effective from August 8, 2007. The RO, in an October 2012 rating decision, increased this rating to 50 percent disabling, effective from October 1, 2012. This increase during did not constitute a full grant of the benefit sought. Therefore, the Veteran's claim for an increased evaluation for the service-connected PTSD remains on appeal. See AB v. Brown, 6 Vet. App. 35, 39 (1993). The appeal is REMANDED to the RO via the Appeals Management Center (AMC), in Washington, DC. VA will notify the appellant if further action is required. REMAND The Board finds that additional development is required before the Veteran's appeal can be adjudicated. Although the Board sincerely regrets the additional delay, it is necessary to ensure that there is a complete record upon which to decide the Veteran's claim so that he is afforded every possible consideration. VA has a duty to make reasonable efforts to assist the claimant in obtaining evidence necessary to substantiate the claim for the benefits sought, unless no reasonable possibility exists that such assistance would aid in substantiating the claim. 38 U.S.C.A. § 5103A(a) (West 2002 & Supp. 2012); 38 C.F.R. § 3.159(c),(d) (2012). The Veteran seeks an initial disability evaluation for PTSD in excess of 30 percent prior to October 1, 2012, and 50 percent thereafter. He was afforded a VA compensation examination in July 2008. The examiner indicated "[t]reatment records available through DHCP were reviewed." These records are not included in the claims file or Virtual VA file, so they need to be obtained on remand. A review of the Virtual VA paperless claims processing system reveals additional documents pertinent to the present appeal. Specifically, an August 8, 2011 VA treatment record indicates the Veteran was followed at the San Jose Vet Center until 2009. A June 2008 letter from this facility is included in the claims file, but the latest treatment records contained in the claims file for this facility date from 2007. As such, these records need to be obtained on remand. Considering the records contained in DHCP and the Vet Center treatment records discussed above, the Board believes there are relevant treatment records that have not been associated with the claims file. Therefore, on remand the AMC/RO should obtain any unassociated treatment records, as set forth below. Additionally, as this case must be remanded, the Veteran should be afforded a VA examination to determine the current severity of his service-connected PTSD. Accordingly, the case is REMANDED for the following action: 1. Make arrangements to obtain all treatment records from (a) the San Jose Vet Center, dated since October 2007; (b) all "DHCP" records; and (c) the Veteran's VA treatment records, dated from August 2007 to April 2010 and dated since October 2012. 2. Thereafter, schedule the Veteran for a VA psychiatric examination to determine the current severity of his service-connected PTSD. The claims file and a copy of this remand must be made available to and reviewed by the examiner in conjunction with the examination. Following examination of the Veteran, the examiner should identify what symptoms, if any, the Veteran currently manifests or has manifested in the recent past that are attributable to his service-connected PTSD. The examiner must conduct a detailed mental status examination. The examiner must also discuss the effect, if any, of the Veteran's PTSD on his social and industrial adaptability. The examiner should assign a Global Assessment of Functioning (GAF) score for the Veteran's PTSD consistent with the American Psychiatric Association Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition (DSM-IV) and explain the significance of the score. A complete rationale must be provided for all opinions offered. 3. Next, review the medical examination report obtained to ensure that the remand directives have been accomplished, and return the case to the examiner if all questions posed are not answered. 4. Finally, readjudicate the claim on appeal. If the claim is not granted to the Veteran's satisfaction, send him and his representative a Supplemental Statement of the Case and give him an opportunity to respond. 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. 2012). _________________________________________________ P.M. DILORENZO 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) (2012).