Citation Nr: 18156404 Decision Date: 12/11/18 Archive Date: 12/07/18 DOCKET NO. 15-44 738 DATE: December 11, 2018 REMANDED Entitlement to service connection for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is remanded. REASONS FOR REMAND The Veteran served on active duty in the United States Army from July 1968 to July 1970. He seeks service connection for PTSD. The Veteran underwent a VA examination in January 2013, and the VA psychiatrist evaluated the Veteran under the American Psychiatric Association’s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual for Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition (DSM-IV) criteria. The examiner found that the Veteran did not meet the criteria for a diagnosis of PTSD under DSM-IV, as there was some doubt over the existence of his stressors. Subsequently, the Veteran submitted an October 2014 evaluation by a private psychologist, who referenced the Fifth Edition of the DSM (DSM-5), but ultimately found that the Veteran met the criteria for a diagnosis of PTSD under the DSM-IV. A diagnosis of PTSD must be established in accordance with 38 C.F.R. § 4.125 (a), which mandates that, for VA purposes, all mental disorder diagnoses must conform to the criteria contained in the DSM-5. See 38 C.F.R. § 3.304 (f) (2017). Previously, 38 C.F.R. § 4.125 (a) provided that mental disorder diagnoses must conform to the DSM-IV. However, effective August 4, 2014, VA issued an interim rule amending the portion of its Schedule for Rating Disabilities dealing with mental disorders, and its adjudication regulations, to refer to certain mental disorders in accordance with the DSM-5. 79 Fed. Reg. 45,093, 45,094 (Aug. 4, 2014). The provisions of the interim final rule, adopted without change in the final rule, only apply to applications for benefits that are received by VA or that are pending before the agency of original jurisdiction on or after August 4, 2014, and do not apply to claims that have been certified for appeal to the Board, even if those claims are subsequently remanded to the agency of original jurisdiction (AOJ). 80 Fed. Reg. 14,308 (March 19, 2015). In the present case, the Veteran applied in April 2012 and his appeal was certified to the Board in June 2016. Because the appeal was pending at the AOJ after August 4, 2014, the diagnostic criteria of the DSM-5 are applicable in the present case. Although the January 2013 VA examiner found that the Veteran did not meet the criteria for PTSD under the DSM-IV, it remains unclear if he meets the new criteria promulgated in the DSM-5. Therefore, the Board finds that an addendum opinion is needed. The matter is REMANDED for the following action: Return the claims file to the January 2013 VA examiner for an addendum opinion. If the examiner who drafted the January 2013 opinion is unavailable, the opinion should be rendered by another appropriate medical professional. The need for another examination is left to the discretion of the medical professional offering the addendum opinion. Following a review of the claims file, the VA examiner is asked to address whether the Veteran has currently, or at any point during the appeal period, met the criteria for PTSD according to the American Psychiatric Association’s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual for Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5). R. FEINBERG Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans’ Appeals ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD Jeremy J. Olsen, Counsel