Citation Nr: 20004890 Decision Date: 01/22/20 Archive Date: 01/21/20 DOCKET NO. 17-36 178A DATE: January 22, 2020 ORDER As new and material evidence has been received, the claim of entitlement to service connection for schizophrenia is reopened. Entitlement to service connection for schizophrenia is granted. FINDINGS OF FACT 1. In May 1976, the Agency of Original Jurisdiction severed service connection for schizophrenia. 2. In September 1976, the Board of Veterans’ Appeals (Board) denied restoration of service connection for schizophrenia. 3. The additional evidence received since the September 1976 Board decision that denied restoration of service connection for schizophrenia is new and material. 4. Schizophrenia originated during active service. CONCLUSIONS OF LAW 1. The September 1976 Board decision denying restoration of service connection for schizophrenia is final. 38 U.S.C. § 7104; 38 C.F.R. § 20.1103. 2. New and material evidence to reopen a claim for service connection for schizophrenia has been presented. 38 U.S.C. §§ 5103, 5103A, 5107, 5108; 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.102, 3.156, 3.159, 3.326(a). 3. The criteria for service connection for schizophrenia are met. 38 U.S.C. §§ 1110, 1131, 5107; 38 C.F.R. § 3.102. REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDINGS AND CONCLUSIONS The Veteran had active service from December 1963 to December 1965. Application to Reopen Claim of Service Connection A final Board decision is not subject to revision upon the same factual basis except upon a finding of clear and unmistakable error or unless new and material evidence is presented. 38 U.S.C. §§ 5108, 7104; 38 C.F.R. § 20.1100. A claimant may reopen a finally adjudicated claim by submitting new and material evidence. New evidence means existing evidence not previously submitted to agency decision makers. Material evidence means existing evidence that, by itself or when considered with previous evidence of record, relates to an unestablished fact necessary to substantiate the claim. New and material evidence can be neither cumulative nor redundant of the evidence of record at the time of the last prior final denial of the claim sought to be reopened, and must raise a reasonable possibility of substantiating the claim. There is a low threshold to raise a reasonable possibility of substantiating the claim. 38 C.F.R. § 3.156(a); Shade v. Shinseki, 24 Vet. App. 110 (2010); Evans v. Brown, 9 Vet. App. 273 (1996); Hodge v. West, 155 F.3d 1356 (Fed. Cir. 1998). The service medical records show that the Veteran was hospitalized for psychiatric symptoms. The Veteran was diagnosed with “passive dependency, chronic, moderately severe, manifested by marked difficulty in being ‘on his own.’” He was prescribed Thorazine. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) examination reports dated in November 1967 show that the Veteran was diagnosed with anxiety reaction and schizophrenic reaction. In December 1967, the Agency of Original Jurisdiction established service connection for an anxiety reaction and assigned a 10 percent rating for that disability, effective August 31, 1967. In May 1969, the Agency of Original Jurisdiction recharacterized the service-connected disability as a schizophrenic reaction and assigned a 100 percent rating, effective September 1, 1968. In February 1976, the Agency of Original Jurisdiction determined that the grant of service connection for an anxiety reaction was clearly and unmistakably erroneous and proposed severing service connection. In May 1976, the Agency of Original Jurisdiction effectuated the proposed severance of service connection for schizophrenia. In September 1976, the Board denied restoration of service connection for schizophrenia as “there is no substantial evidentiary basis to conclude that service connection should have been granted for the anxiety reaction and subsequently for the schizophrenic reaction.” The additional documentation received since the September 1976 Board decision includes VA examination and clinical documentation, private clinical documentation, and written statements from the Veteran, his wife, his sister, and his associates. An undated psychiatric evaluation from M. Cesta, M.D., received in February 2014 states that the Veteran had been diagnosed with schizophrenia by multiple psychiatrists and “there is no question [the Veteran’s] symptoms began while he was on active duty service and progressed from that point forward.” The Board finds that Dr. Cesta’s psychiatric evaluation is new and material as it indicates that the diagnosed schizophrenia was initially manifested during active service. As new and material evidence has been received, the Veteran’s claim of entitlement to service connection for schizophrenia is reopened. The Board will next address entitlement to service connection for schizophrenia. Service Connection for Schizophrenia Service connection may be established for disability arising from disease or injury incurred in or aggravated by active service. 38 U.S.C. §§ 1110, 1131. The service medical records show that the Veteran was hospitalized for psychiatric symptoms. The Veteran was diagnosed with “passive dependency, chronic, moderately severe, manifested by marked difficulty in being ‘on his own.’” He was prescribed Thorazine. VA examination reports dated in November 1967 show that the Veteran was diagnosed with anxiety reaction and schizophrenia reaction. A January 2019 psychological evaluation from L. Cortes-Ruiz, psychologist, states that the Veteran was diagnosed with schizophrenia. He concluded that: “it is at least as likely as not that [the Veteran’s] schizophrenic disability is the result of his military service;” “an absence of diagnosis does not mean an absence of disease;” and “I firmly agree that the prodromal symptoms mark the onset of the disease.” An undated psychiatric evaluation from Dr. Cesta received in February 2014 states that the Veteran has been diagnosed with schizophrenia by multiple psychiatrists and “there is no question [the Veteran’s] symptoms began while he was on active duty service and progressed from that point forward.” The Veteran was treated for psychiatric symptoms during active service and was diagnosed with schizophrenia by VA and private psychiatrists following service separation. Drs. Cortes-Ruiz and Cesta have determined that the documented in service psychiatric symptoms were the initial manifestations of the Veteran’s schizophrenia. The Board finds that the evidence is in at least equipoise as to whether the diagnosed schizophrenia originated during active service. Resolving all reasonable doubt in the Veteran’s favor, the Board concludes that service connection for schizophrenia is warranted. 38 U.S.C. § 5107; 38 C.F.R. § 3.102. Harvey P. Roberts Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans’ Appeals Attorney for the Board J. T. Hutcheson, 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.