Citation Nr: 18151169 Decision Date: 11/20/18 Archive Date: 11/16/18 DOCKET NO. 16-41 740 DATE: November 20, 2018 REMANDED 1. Entitlement to a compensable rating for gastritis is remanded. 2. Entitlement to a rating in excess of 50 percent for anxiety is remanded. 3. Entitlement to a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disability (TDIU) is remanded. REASONS FOR REMAND The appellant is a Veteran who served on active duty from September 2007 to March 2008, and from March 2011 to April 2012. These matters are before the Board on appeal from December 2014 and January 2015 rating decisions. 1. Entitlement to a compensable rating for gastritis. 2. Entitlement to a rating in excess of 50 percent for anxiety not otherwise specified. The Veteran contends that his gastritis and psychiatric disability have increased since he was last examined by VA in April 2016 and March 2018, respectively. A July 2018 statement by the Veteran’s treating VA psychiatrist notes that his diagnosed anxiety, PTSD, adjustment disorder, and insomnia cause significant anxiety as well as regular panic attacks that can be severe, and his anxiety is worsened around people and in public, which has interfered with his ability to maintain a job. The Veteran has also submitted his mother’s and his own lay statements describing the severe daily difficulties he experiences due to worsening symptoms. Given the suggestion of worsening of both disabilities, contemporaneous examinations to assess them are necessary. 3. Entitlement to a TDIU rating. In Rice v. Shinseki, 22 Vet. App. 447 (2009), the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims held, in essence, that when the matter of entitlement to a TDIU rating is raised by the record in a claim for increase, such matter becomes part of the increased rating claim. Here, although a February 2017 rating decision previously denied entitlement to a TDIU rating, the Veteran submitted an August 2018 statement raising entitlement to TDIU as part and parcel of, and intertwined with, the pending appeal for increased ratings. The newly submitted claim for entitlement to a TDIU rating has not been developed or adjudicated. Therefore, it must be remanded for such action. The matters are REMANDED for the following: 1. Arrange for the Veteran to be examined by an appropriate clinician to assess the severity of his service-connected gastritis. The examiner should provide a full description of the disability, reporting all signs and symptoms necessary for evaluating the disability under the applicable schedular criteria. The examiner should elicit information regarding the severity, frequency, and duration of any flare-ups, and the degree of functional loss during flare-ups. The examiner should comment on the impact of the gastritis on occupational and daily living activities functioning. 2. Also arrange for a psychiatric evaluation of the Veteran to assess the severity of his service connected psychiatric disabilities. The examiner should review the Veteran’s claims file and the schedular criteria for rating mental disorders in conjunction with the examination. The examiner should describe in detail all signs and symptoms of the disability (noting the presence or absence of all symptoms listed in the schedular criteria for psychiatric ratings above 50 percent, as well as any symptoms of such nature and severity found that are not listed in the schedular criteria). The examiner should comment on the impact the psychiatric disability has on the Veteran’s occupational and social/daily activity functioning. 3. After any further development indicated, adjudicate entitlement to TDIU considering the determinations on the other claims remanded. If TDIU is denied, so advise the Veteran (and advise him of his appellate rights). If he files a notice of disagreement and a substantive appeal after a SOC is issued, return the matter to the Board. GEORGE R. SENYK Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans’ Appeals ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD D. Schechner, Counsel