Citation Nr: 21026407 Decision Date: 05/03/21 Archive Date: 05/03/21 DOCKET NO. 16-31 498 DATE: May 3, 2021 ORDER Entitlement to service connection for an acquired psychiatric disability, to include posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is denied. FINDING OF FACT The preponderance of the evidence indicates that the Veteran does not have a current psychiatric disability. CONCLUSION OF LAW The criteria for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disability, to include PTSD, have not been met. 38 U.S.C. §§ 1110, 1131, 5107; 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.102, 3.303, 3.304. REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDING AND CONCLUSION The Veteran served on active duty from May 1981 to August 1987, October 2001 to October 2002, March 2006 to April 2007, and July 2009 to March 2010. Evidence affiliated with the claims file also indicates that the Veteran served in the Reserve from October 2001 to October 2002, March 2006 to March 2007, March 2007 to April 2007, and July 2009 to January 2010. This matter again comes before the Board of Veterans' Appeals (Board) on appeal from an April 2015 rating decision issued by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO) in Decatur, Georgia. The Board previously remanded this matter in October 2018. 1. Acquired Psychiatric Disability Service connection may be granted for a disability resulting from a disease or injury incurred in or aggravated by service. 38 U.S.C. §§ 1110, 1131; 38 C.F.R. § 3.303. Establishing service connection generally requires competent medical or lay evidence of three things: (1) a current disability; (2) an in-service incurrence or aggravation of a disease or injury; and (3) a causal relationship, i.e., a nexus, between the current disability and the condition or injury incurred or aggravated during service. See Shedden v. Principi, 381, F.3d 1163, 1167 (Fed. Cir. 2004). In determining whether service connection is warranted for a disability, VA is responsible for deciding whether the evidence supports the claim or is in relative equipoise, with the claimant prevailing in either event, or whether a preponderance of the evidence is against the claim, in which case the claim must be denied. 38 U.S.C. § 5107; 38 C.F.R. § 3.102; Gilbert v. Derwinski, 1 Vet. App. 49 (1990). Here, the Veteran was examined twice for a psychiatric disability: once in February 2015 and once in October 2019. Both examiners concluded that the Veteran did not have a current psychiatric condition; however, the Board noted that the Veteran previously asserted that his private physician diagnosed him with PTSD. See October 2018 Board Remand; September 2014 VA Primary Care Initial Evaluation Note; March 2016 Notice of Disagreement; July 2016 VA Form 9. As a result, the Board requested that the Veteran's private medical records be obtained to determine whether, at any point during the appellate period, he was clinically diagnosed with a psychiatric disorder. See October 2018 Board Remand; McClain v. Nicholson, 21 Vet. App. 319 (2009) (a disability which resolves during the appeal period may be subject to service connection, so long as a disability was present during the appeal period). In July 2019, the VA contacted the Veteran and requested that he identify his private medical records related to his mental health treatment so that VA could obtain them and/or submit his private medical records himself. See July 2019 Subsequent Development Letter. In this correspondence, the VA provided the Veteran with authorization forms to also return to VA so that VA could assist him in obtaining these records. To date, the Veteran has not responded to that letter. Given the RO's actions and the Veteran's choice to not respond to VA's request or to submit his private medical records, the Board finds that VA has no remaining duty regarding obtaining said records. Although VA has a duty to assist the Veteran in substantiating his claim, that duty is not a one-way street and it is important that he make efforts to assist the VA in gathering evidence relevant to his claim. Woods v. Gober, 14 Vet. App. 214, 224 (2000); Hurd v. West, 13 Vet. App. 449, 452 (2000); Wood v. Derwinski, 1 Vet. App. 190, 193 (1991). As noted in the Veteran's examinations of record, the Veteran does not meet the requirements for a clinically diagnosed psychiatric condition in accordance with the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual for Mental Disorders. The Board acknowledges that the Veteran's VA provider noted that he suffered from PTSD, but the Veteran's VA provider only acknowledged the diagnosis via the Veteran's own report and not via an examination. A September 2014 triage note also found that the Veteran did not exhibit PTSD or any other psychiatric condition. See September 2014 VA Nursing Triage Note. Though the Veteran's private medical records could have indicated a psychiatric diagnosis, without the records evidencing said diagnosis and the Veteran's treatment, the Board has no option but to deny the Veteran's claim because there is no current disability. (Continued on the next page) Because the preponderance of the evidence reflects that the Veteran does not have a current psychiatric disability, service connection is not warranted in this matter. See 38 U.S.C. § 5107; 38 C.F.R. § 3.303; Gilbert, 1 Vet. App. at 55. DELYVONNE M. WHITEHEAD Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans' Appeals Attorney for the Board S. Seserman 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.