Citation Nr: A19001562 Decision Date: 09/25/19 Archive Date: 09/25/19 DOCKET NO. 190517-6256 DATE: September 25, 2019 ORDER Entitlement to service connection for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is granted. FINDING OF FACT The Veteran’s PTSD is etiologically related to her active service. CONCLUSION OF LAW The criteria for service connection for PTSD are met. 38 U.S.C. §§ 1110, 1131, 5107; 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.102, 3.303, 3.304. REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDING AND CONCLUSION The Veteran had active service from September 1998 to September 2002. On August 23, 2017, the President signed into law the Veterans Appeals Improvement and Modernization Act, Pub. L. No. 115-55 (to be codified as amended in scattered sections of 38 U.S.C.), 131 Stat. 1105 (2017), also known as the Appeals Modernization Act (AMA). This law creates a new framework for veterans dissatisfied with VA’s decision on their claim to seek review. A March 2019 rating decision reopened the Veteran’s previously denied claim for service connection for depression and then denied entitlement to service connection for depression and PTSD with panic attacks. The Board is bound by the favorable finding that new and relevant evidence was presented. See 38 C.F.R. § 3.104(c). The Veteran filed a Notice of Disagreement in May 2019 appealing only entitlement to service connection for PTSD and electing the evidence submission review option. Consequently, the Board’s decision is based on a review of the evidence of record at the time of the March 2019 rating decision and any evidence submitted within 90 days of the May 2019 appeal to the Board. See 38 C.F.R. § 20.303. Entitlement to service connection for PTSD. The Veteran contends that she has a diagnosis of PTSD due to two stressors she experienced during her active service. Specifically, due to an emergency c-section resulting in her son’s premature birth and stay in a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), and her son’s subsequent surgery for pyloric stenosis, which had been causing him to starve. Service connection for PTSD requires (1) medical evidence diagnosing the condition in accordance with 38 C.F.R. § 4.125(a); (2) a link, established by medical evidence, between current symptoms and an in-service stressor; and (3) credible supporting evidence that the claimed in-service stressor occurred. 38 C.F.R. § 3.304(f). Those criteria are met here. A September 2018 VA examination demonstrates that the Veteran has a current diagnosis of PTSD that conforms to the DSM-5 criteria. See id. §§ 3.304(f), 4.125(a). The VA examiner attributed the Veteran’s PTSD to the Veteran’s reported stressors involving medical emergencies surrounding the birth and subsequent health issues of her son. The Veteran’s private counselor also opined that the Veteran’s PTSD diagnosis was directly caused by her experiences surrounding childbirth and the healthcare issues of her son in service, as well as being denied promotion and being disparaged due to her weight. The Veteran submitted treatment records from October 2000 to January 2001 with her NOD that detail her emergency c-section as well as her son’s NICU stay and her son’s surgery for pyloric stenosis. These records constitute credible supporting evidence showing that the Veteran’s in-service stressor occurred. Accordingly, entitlement to service connection for PTSD is granted. See id. § 3.304. MARISSA CAYLOR Acting Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans’ Appeals Attorney for the Board Douglas M. Humphrey, Associate Counsel The Board’s decision in this case is binding only with respect to the instant matter decided. This decision is not precedential, and does not establish VA policies or interpretations of general applicability. 38 C.F.R. § 20.1303.