Citation Nr: 21014651
Decision Date: 03/15/21	Archive Date: 03/15/21

DOCKET NO. 18-19 732
DATE: March 15, 2021

REMANDED

Service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, to include posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), is remanded.

REASONS FOR REMAND

The Veteran served on active duty from November 1963 to August 1964. In January 2020, the Board of Veterans’ Appeals (Board) denied service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, to include PTSD. The Veteran then appealed to the Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims (Court), which granted a joint motion for partial remand in September 2020. 

The parties to the joint motion stipulated that remand is necessary for several reasons: (1) to obtain a new medical opinion from a different examiner without any suggestive language in the examination request; (2) to request the Veteran’s clinical records from the Pensacola Naval Hospital from 1964; (3) to make adequate efforts to corroborate the Veteran’s reported stressor event based on his service aboard the USS Assurance; (4) to address the Veteran’s October 2017 statement regarding the adequacy of the June 2017 VA examination; and (5) to request that the Veteran submit a VA Form 21-4142 for Lynn Bolen’s private treatment records. 

Accordingly, the Board is remanding the appeal to the agency of original jurisdiction for development consistent with the terms of the joint motion and the Court’s Order. 

The Board by this remand makes no determination, expressed or implied, concerning the credibility of any statements on file.

The matter is REMANDED for the following action:

1. Obtain records of any inpatient treatment at the Pensacola Naval Hospital in 1964. Document all requests for information as well as all responses in the claims file.

2. Ask the Veteran to complete a VA Form 21-4142 for Lynn Bolen. Make two requests for the authorized records, unless it is clear after the first request that a second request would be futile.

3. Attempt to corroborate the Veteran’s reported in-service stressor involving a confrontation with a Cuban warship in approximately June 1964, based on his service aboard the USS Assurance at the time of the reported incident. If more details are needed, contact the Veteran to request the information.

4. Schedule the Veteran for a mental health examination with a different examiner than the June 2017 examiner. After reviewing the claims file, including this remand, the examiner should provide an opinion on the following: 

With respect to any psychiatric disorder diagnosed, is it at least as likely as not (50 percent or greater probability) that the disorder is etiologically related to service, or manifested within one year of discharge from service? 

If the examiner diagnoses PTSD, the specific stressor(s) on which that diagnosis is based must be identified. 

5. Review the medical opinion above to ensure substantial compliance with the Board’s directives. Take any necessary corrective action.

6. Readjudicate the Veteran’s claim. If it remains denied, issue a supplemental statement of the case and allow the Veteran and his attorney the opportunity to respond. Then return to the Board for further appellate review.

 

 

KELLI A. KORDICH

Veterans Law Judge

Board of Veterans’ Appeals

Attorney for the Board	D.Z. Wall, 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.