Citation Nr: 21070562
Decision Date: 11/24/21	Archive Date: 11/24/21

DOCKET NO. 16-13 652
DATE: November 24, 2021

REMANDED

Entitlement to an effective date prior to February 28, 2012, for the award of a 70 percent rating for panic disorder and major depressive disorder (MDD) is remanded.

REASONS FOR REMAND

This appeal is from a September 2013 rating decision. In October 2018, the Board denied the Veteran's appeal for an earlier effective date for the grant of a 70 percent rating for panic disorder and MDD.  The Veteran appealed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims (Court), which, in an August 2019 Order, vacated the Board's October 2018 decision and remanded the claim back to the Board pursuant to a Joint Motion for Remand (JMR). 

In a February 2020 decision, the Board assigned an effective date of February 28, 2012 for the 70 percent rating.  The Veteran again appealed to the Court, and in a January 2021 Order, the Court vacated the February 2020 Board decision and remanded the matter for action consistent with the terms of a JMR.  In the January 2021 JMR, the Court found that remand is in order to correct a duty to assist error regarding missing medical records.  Specifically, the Court found that VA failed to make attempts to obtain records from group therapy sessions noted in the record. 

In May 2021, the Board remanded for AOJ to request that the Veteran to identify all outstanding private treatment records, including group therapy records, and submit or authorize the VA to obtain those records.  The AOJ contacted the Veteran and requested he identify such records.  In response, the Veteran provided a release form for a private provider.  The AOJ contacted the provider and she ultimately responded by providing a letter dated September 2021.  However, the Board notes, as is specified in the January 2021 JMR, the record indicates that the Veteran has participated in a PTSD group at the VA.  A September 2009 McHenry CBOC psychiatry note states that the Veteran attends a weekly PTSD group at that clinic.  Records from December 2010 indicate that that group therapy is separate from the individual therapy provided by the private provider who submitted the September 2021 letter.  As the record does not reflect that the AOJ has made any attempts to verify whether there are any existing VA group therapy records, versus private therapy records, the Board finds that a remand is necessary. 

On remand, the AOJ should ensure all VA group therapy records, which may be stored separately from the Veteran's CAPRI treatment records, are obtained and associated with his claims file.

The matters are REMANDED for the following action:

Obtain and associate with the Veteran's claims file all VA PTSD group therapy records involving the Veteran.

 

 

H. SEESEL

Veterans Law Judge

Board of Veterans' Appeals

Attorney for the Board	A. Christensen

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.