Citation Nr: 18159717 Decision Date: 12/19/18 Archive Date: 12/19/18 DOCKET NO. 15-03 552 DATE: December 19, 2018 ORDER Entitlement to an effective date earlier than September 19, 2013, for the grant of service connection for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is denied. FINDING OF FACT The Veteran’s claim for service connection for PTSD was submitted on September 19, 2013. CONCLUSION OF LAW The criteria for an effective date earlier than September 19, 2013, for the grant of service connection for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) have not been met. 38 U.S.C. § 5110; 38 C.F.R. § 3.400. REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDING AND CONCLUSION The Veteran served on active duty from August 1964 to June 1967. Entitlement to an effective date earlier than September 19, 2013, for the grant of service connection for PTSD. The Veteran contends that he was diagnosed with PTSD in March 2007, but was never made aware of the diagnosis. Therefore, the effective date for service connection for his PTSD should be March 2007, instead of the assigned date of September 19, 2013. The relevant law provides that, except as otherwise provided, the effective date of an award of compensation based on an original claim, a claim reopened after a final disallowance, or a claim for increase will be the date of receipt of the claim or the date entitlement arose, whichever is later. 38 U.S.C. § 5110(a); 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.400, 3.400(b)(2). Effective March 24, 2015, VA amended its regulations to require that all claims governed by VA’s adjudication regulations be filed on a standard form. The amendments implement the concept of an intent to file a claim for benefits, which operates similarly to the informal claim process, but requires that the submission establishing a claimant’s effective date of benefits must be received in one of three specified formats. The amendments also eliminate the constructive receipt of VA reports of hospitalization or examination and other medical records as informal claims to reopen under 38 C.F.R. § 3.157. See 79 Fed. Reg. 57,660 (Sept. 25, 2014) (now codified at 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.1(p), 3.151, 3.155). The amendments apply only to claims filed on or after March 24, 2015. Because the Veteran’s claim was received by VA prior to that date, the former regulations apply, as provided below. A specific claim in the form prescribed by VA must be filed in order for benefits to be paid or furnished to any individual under the laws administered by VA. 38 U.S.C. § 5101(a) (previously 38 U.S.C. § 3001(a)); 38 C.F.R. § 3.151(a). The term “claim” or “application” means a formal or informal communication in writing requesting a determination of entitlement or evidencing a belief in entitlement to a benefit. 38 C.F.R. § 3.1(p). Any communication or action indicating an intent to apply for one or more benefits under the laws administered by VA from a claimant may be considered an informal claim. Such informal claim must identify the benefit sought. Upon receipt of an informal claim, if a formal claim has not been filed, an application form will be forwarded to the claimant for execution. 38 C.F.R. § 3.155(a). To determine when a claim was received, the Board must review all communications in the claims file that may be construed as an application or claim. See Quarles v. Derwinski, 3 Vet. App. 129, 134 (1992). The Board finds that the preponderance of the evidence is against an effective date earlier than September 19, 2013, for the grant of service connection for PTSD. On September 13, 2013, the Veteran contacted VA by telephone to file a claim for PTSD. The Veteran stated that he was diagnosed on March 7, 2007 but that he was never informed of the diagnosis. In September 2013, the RO sent the Veteran a Veteran’s Claim Assistance Act (VCAA) notice letter advising the Veteran that VA received his claim for disability compensation for PTSD. In October 2013, the Veteran submitted three PTSD stressor statements and one medical record showing that he had a PTSD diagnosis in March 2007. The Veteran also provided a written statement that he was never told in 2007 that he was diagnosed with PTSD. Applying the pertinent VA regulation (38 C.F.R. § 3.400) to the facts, assignment of an effective date earlier than September 19, 2013, is not warranted, as this date is the day of receipt of the Veteran’s claim for service connection PTSD. The Board acknowledges the Veteran’s contention that he was unaware that he was diagnosed with PTSD in March 2007, implying he would have filed his claim in 2007 had he known of his PTSD diagnosis. To the extent that the Veteran contends that he should be entitled to an earlier effective date based on the diagnosis of PTSD in March 2007, the Board points out that there is no provision in the law for awarding an earlier effective date based simply on the presence of the disability or treatment therefor. Entitlement to benefits for a disability does not arise with a medical diagnosis of the condition, but with the manifestation of the condition and the filing of a claim for benefits for the condition. See DeLisio v. Shinseki, 25 Vet. App. 45 (2011); 38 U.S.C. § 5110(a). Thus, his date of diagnosis cannot serve as the date of claim in this case as there was no claim filed for benefits at that time. Neither the Veteran nor his representative have asserted that he filed a claim for service connection for PTSD prior to September 19, 2013. Therefore, the Board concludes that a formal or informal claim for service connection for PTSD was not received by VA prior to September 19, 2013. The evidence demonstrates that the Veteran is not entitled to an effective date prior to September 19, 2013, for the grant of service connection for PTSD. As the preponderance of the evidence is against the claim, the benefit of the doubt doctrine is not for application. See generally Gilbert v. Derwinski, 1 Vet. App. 49 (1990). M.E. Larkin Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans’ Appeals ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD Perkins, Michael