Citation Nr: 21004625
Decision Date: 01/27/21	Archive Date: 01/27/21

DOCKET NO. 15-13 413
DATE: January 27, 2021

REMANDED

Entitlement to service connection for a psychiatric disability, to include posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), for accrued benefits purposes, is remanded.

INTRODUCTION

The Veteran served on active duty from December 1965 to October 1967.  The Veteran died in May 2019.  His surviving spouse has been substituted as the Appellant.

This matter comes before the Board of Veterans’ Appeals (Board) on appeal from a December 2013 rating decision by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO) in Houston, Texas.

In March 2017, the Veteran testified at a hearing before the undersigned Veterans Law Judge.  A transcript of this hearing has been associated with the claims file.

This matter was remanded by the Board in June 2018 for additional development.  After the issuance of an August 2020 supplemental statement of the case, the appeal was remitted to the Board for further appellate review.

REASONS FOR REMAND

Pursuant to the June 2018 remand, the RO obtained a December 2019 etiological opinion from a VA examiner regarding the Veteran’s psychiatric disability.  Although the examiner thoroughly reviewed and discussed the evidence of record, the rendered opinion was limited to whether the Veteran’s psychiatric disability onset during his active duty and was chronically experienced thereafter.  Further, the examiner relied primarily, if not solely, on the Veteran’s reported symptoms to ascertain the presence of a diagnosable psychiatric disability.  Consequently, the Board finds that the December 2019 opinion is insufficient for adjudication purposes and, thus, a remand is required to obtain another opinion.

The matters are REMANDED for the following action:

Request that the December 2019 VA examiner or, if unavailable, an appropriate substitute render a supplemental opinion regarding the Veteran’s psychiatric disability.  After a review of the claims file, the examiner is asked to provide response to the following questions:

(a)	Did the Veteran experience a diagnosable psychiatric disability prior to his death?  If so, describe the nature of each.

(b)	For each such disability, is it at least as likely as not (a 50 percent probability or greater) that it arose during service OR is etiologically related to his active duty service, even if first diagnosed after his service separation?

In so doing, the examiner is asked to consider and discuss the November 2013 VA examination and the December 2019 opinion.  Further, the examiner is asked to consider and discuss the Veteran’s in-service stressors related to clearing mines and mine fields.

A complete rationale for any rendered opinion is required.

 

 

T. REYNOLDS

Veterans Law Judge

Board of Veterans’ Appeals

Attorney for the Board	Sean G. Pflugner, 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.