Citation Nr: 21003168 Decision Date: 01/19/21 Archive Date: 01/19/21 DOCKET NO. 19-18 215 DATE: January 19, 2021 REMANDED The issue of service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, to include posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), unspecified depressive disorder, and unspecified anxiety disorder, is remanded. REASONS FOR REMAND The Veteran served on active duty from March 1971 to April 1977. This matter comes before the Board of Veterans’ Appeals (Board) on appeal from a rating decision by a Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO). In September 2019, the Board denied service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder. The Veteran appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims (Court). In September 2020, the Court granted a Joint Motion for Remand, vacating the Board’s decision and remanding for further development and readjudication consistent with the motion. In the Joint Motion, the parties agreed to remand the issue of service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, finding that the Board erred, in part, by relying upon the April 22, 2019 VA examination because the examiner did not provide a rationale for why unspecified depressive disorder and unspecified anxiety disorder were not related to service. The April 2019 VA examiner diagnosed unspecified depressive disorder and unspecified anxiety disorder and opined that the diagnoses were less likely than not related to service because he was “unable to find any definite link between the Veteran’s currently reported symptoms and his military service.” The parties explained that this statement does not provide a rationale explaining why the Veteran’s symptoms for his diagnosed unspecified depressive disorder and unspecified anxiety disorder were not related to service. See Nieves-Rodriguez v. Peake, 22 Vet. App. at 301 (2008). Therefore, a remand is warranted for a new VA examination that discusses the etiology of the Veteran’s diagnosed psychiatric disorders of unspecified depressive disorder and unspecified anxiety disorder. Additionally, the parties agreed to remand the issue of service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, finding that the Board failed to provide an adequate statement of reasons or bases when it found that the Veteran’s PTSD was not related to service based on his alleged stressors. The parties explained that it is unclear from the Board’s findings whether the Veteran’s statements in his October 2015 Notice of Disagreement (NOD) about his constant worry and fear relate to the collision of his ship with the USS Nitro, or relate to a separate stressor of fear of military hostility while deployed in Vietnam that has not been addressed by an examiner. Therefore, remand is warranted to provide the Veteran an opportunity to clarify his stressors and if necessary, for an examiner to determine whether any separate stressor is related to his fear of military hostility while deployed in Vietnam. The matters are REMANDED for the following action: 1. Obtain an addendum opinion addressing the etiology of the Veteran’s claimed acquired psychiatric disorder, to include PTSD, unspecified depressive disorder, and unspecified anxiety disorder. Access to the electronic claims file must be made available to the examiner for review. The examiner is asked to provide an opinion on the following: a. Whether it is at least as likely as not (50 percent or greater probability) that the Veteran has PTSD that is related or attributable to any incident of the Veteran’s military service, to include any corroborated stressors and stressors involving the fear of in-service hostile military or terrorist activity, meaning that the Veteran experienced, witnessed, or was confronted with an event or circumstance that involved actual or threatened death or serious injury, or a threat to the physical integrity of the Veteran or others, and the Veteran’s response to the event or circumstance involved a psychological or psycho-physiological state of fear, helplessness, or horror, and whether his symptoms are related to the claimed in-service stressor(s). b. Whether it is at least as likely as not (50 percent or greater probability) that the Veteran’s claimed acquired psychiatric disorders, other than PTSD, to include unspecified depressive disorder and unspecified anxiety disorder, are etiologically related to service, to include his service in Vietnam. A complete rationale for the requested opinions should be provided. If the examiner feels that the requested opinions cannot be rendered without resorting to speculation, he or she must explain why this is so. JAMES L. MARCH Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans’ Appeals Attorney for the Board S. Griffith 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.