Citation Nr: 21026672
Decision Date: 05/03/21	Archive Date: 05/03/21

DOCKET NO. 13-31 599
DATE:  May 3, 2021

           

REMANDED

Entitlement to an initial rating in excess of 30 percent for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is remanded.

Entitlement to a total disability rating due to individual unemployability (TDIU) is remanded.

REASONS FOR REMAND

The Veteran served on active duty from March 1963 to May 1965. The Veteran died in March 2015. The Appellant seeks surviving spouse benefits and has been substituted into this appeal.

In a December 2019 decision, the Board, in pertinent part, denied the Veteran's claim for a higher rating for PTSD. The Appellant appealed the Board's decision to the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims (Court). In November 2020 Order, the Court granted a Joint Motion for Remand (JMR) and vacated the Board's decision. This matter was remanded to the Board for readjudication in accordance with the JMR. 

In Rice v. Shinseki, 22 Vet. App. 447 (2009), the Court held that a claim for a TDIU rating is part of an appeal for an increased rating claim when such claim is raised by the record. A claim for TDIU has been raised by the Appelant's attorney. 

1. Entitlement to an initial rating in excess of 30 percent for PTSD is remanded.

The record contains an October 2019 private psychologist's report. In the report, the psychologist indicates that the Veteran's PTSD lead to abuse of alcohol. This raises questions of secondary service connection that the Board finds requires additional development based on a thorough review of the current evidence of record. Although service connection cannot be granted on a direct basis, it can be granted on a secondary basis.

2. Entitlement to TDIU is remanded.

The issue of entitlement to a TDIU is, in part, based on the Veteran's service-connected psychiatric disability. Thus, as the issue of entitlement to a TDIU is intertwined with the higher rating and service connection claims, a remand is warranted for the claim for TDIU. Id.

The matters are REMANDED for the following action:

Obtain a medical opinion that addresses the severity of the Veteran's service connection PTSD during his lifetime. In considering the overall impact of the disability, the examiner should address whether it is as least as likely as not that the Veteran's PTSD lead to an alcohol abuse disability. If the answer is no, the examiner should consider the severity of the disability without consideration of the impact of the alcohol abuse disability (to the extent possible). If yes, the examiner should consider the level of severity considering the impact of the alcohol abuse disability. The examiner should also discuss the impact the disability had on the Veteran's ability to maintain substantially gainful employment in light of his work history and education. In providing the above opinion, the examiner should consider all relevant evidence of record, to include the October 2019 private psychologist report. 

 

 

Nathaniel Doan

Veterans Law Judge

Board of Veterans' Appeals

Attorney for the Board	A.D. Jackson, 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.