Citation Nr: 18136356 Decision Date: 09/18/18 Archive Date: 09/18/18 DOCKET NO. 14-42 221 DATE: September 18, 2018 ORDER Entitlement to an effective date of November 13, 1979, but no earlier, for the award of service connection for schizophrenia is granted. FINDINGS OF FACT 1. The Veteran was granted service connection for schizophrenia in a February 2012 Board decision with an effective date of November 9, 2005. 2. Prior to the November 2005 claim for service connection, there was an outstanding November 1979 claim for chronic schizophrenia that remained unadjudicated. CONCLUSION OF LAW The criteria for an effective date of November 13, 1979, but no earlier, for the award of service connection for schizophrenia have been met. 38 U.S.C. §§ 5107, 5110 (2012); 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.114, 3.155, 3.156, 3.400 (2018). REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDINGS AND CONCLUSION The Veteran had active military service from August 1974 to September 1975. This matter comes before the Board of Veterans’ Appeals (Board) on appeal from a February 2013 rating decision by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO). By way of background, the Veteran initially applied a claim for service connection for schizophrenia on November 13, 1979. See November 1979 VA 21-526 Veterans Application for Compensation or Pension. In August 1981, the RO denied his claim for service connection for psychosis. See August 1981 Rating Decision. Three days later, the Veteran again submitted a claim for service connection for schizophrenia. See August 1981 VA 21/526 Veterans Application for Compensation or Pension. No subsequent rating decision or statement of the case was rendered. Instead, in May 1992, the Veteran submitted a statement to seek entitlement to service connection for paranoid schizophrenia and psychosis. See May 1992 VA 21-4138 Statement in Support of Claim. In August 1992, the RO denied service connection for nervous condition. The Veteran submitted a statement in May 1993 to reopen his claim for schizophrenia. See May 1993 VA 21-4138 Statement in Support of Claim. No subsequent rating decision or statement of the case was issued. Instead, in November 2005, the Veteran again applied to reopen his claim for entitlement to service connection for schizophrenia. See November 2005 VA 21-4138 Statement in Support of Claim. The April 2006 rating decision denied the Veteran’s claim as there was no new and material evidence to reopen the claim. However, in February 2012, the Board granted service connection for schizophrenia effective November 9, 2005. Earlier Effective Date Generally, the effective date for an award of service connection is the day following separation from active service or the date entitlement arose, if the claim is received within one year after separation from service. Otherwise, the effective date is the later of the date of receipt of claim or the date of entitlement to service connection arose. 38 U.S.C. § 5110 ; 38 C.F.R. § 3.400 (b)(2). The Board notes that, effective March 24, 2015, VA amended its regulations so that a claim for benefits must be made on a specific claim form prescribed by the Secretary. 78 Fed. Reg. 65490 (Oct. 31, 2013) (eff. Mar. 24, 2015). However, all of the statements of record potentially relevant to the Veteran’s earlier effective date claim were received prior to the effective date of the amendment, and therefore the law governing what constituted a claim for VA purposes prior to the amendment is controlling in this case. Prior to the March 24, 2015 amendment, a claim was defined as a formal or informal written communication requesting a determination of entitlement, or evidencing a belief in entitlement, to a benefit. 38 C.F.R. § 3.1 (p). An informal claim was any communication or action indicating intent to apply for one or more benefits. 38 C.F.R. § 3.155 (a). VA was required to look to all communications from a claimant that may be interpreted as applications or claims-formal and informal-for benefits and was required to identify and act on informal claims for benefits. Servello v. Derwinski, 3 Vet. App. 196, 198 (1992). In this case, the Veteran filed a claim to appeal the assigned effective date for the grant of service connection for schizophrenia. In a February 2013 rating decision, the RO determined that by law November 9, 2005 is the earliest effective date. The Veteran contends that he is entitled to an effective date of November 13, 1979, the day he initially filed his claim for service connection for schizophrenia. Specifically, the Veteran points to his November 1979 application for compensation for chronic schizophrenia. See November 1979 VA 21-526 Veterans Application for Compensation or Pension. Based on the November 1979 claim, in August 1981 the RO denied service connection for psychosis and chronic schizophrenia. Three days after the rating decision, the Veteran filed a new application for compensation for schizophrenia. See August 1981 VA 21-526 Veterans Application for Compensation or Pension. The RO accepted the application as a new application rather than as a notice of disagreement. The Board disagrees with the RO and finds that this form should have been treated as a notice of disagreement, especially since the Veteran filed it three days after the rating decision. 38 C.F.R. § 3.156(b). The Board finds that the Veteran timely appealed the August 1981 rating decision, as the new application showed his intent to disagree with the August 1981 determination. As such, the November 1979 claim was both unadjudicated and pending at the time service connection was granted. (Continued on the next page)   The Board also notes that the Veteran filed another claim for entitlement to service connection for schizophrenia in May 1992. In August 1992 rating decision the RO denied service connection for nervous condition. In May 1993, within the one year period, the Veteran submitted a statement requesting to reopen his claim for schizophrenia. See May 1993 VA 21-4138 Statement in Support of Claim. The Board finds that this statement was a notice of disagreement rather than a new claim as the statement was submitted within one year of the August 1992 rating decision to seek service connection for the same disability. As such, even the May 1992 claim was unadjudicated and pending when the Veteran submitted another claim in November 2005. Based on the evidence of record, the Board finds that the earliest pending and unadjudicated claim was in November 13, 1979. As such, the Board finds that the February 2012 Board decision that granted service connection for schizophrenia stemmed from the November 1979 claim as the November 1979 claim was both unadjudicated and pending at the time service connection was granted. Accordingly, an effective date of November 13, 1979, but no earlier, for the award of service connection for schizophrenia is warranted. KELLI A. KORDICH Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans’ Appeals ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD P. Noh, Associate Counsel