Citation Nr: 21042013 Decision Date: 07/11/21 Archive Date: 07/11/21 DOCKET NO. 18-40 041 DATE: July 11, 2021 ORDER New and material evidence having been received, the claim for service connection for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is reopened. Service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, defined as PTSD and claustrophobia with depression and anxiety, is granted. FINDINGS OF FACT 1. A June 2017 rating decision denied service connection for PTSD. The Veteran was notified of the decision and of his appellate rights, but he did not initiate an appeal. 2. The evidence received since the June 2017 denial relates to unestablished facts necessary to substantiate the claim for service connection for PTSD and raises a reasonable possibility of substantiating the claim. 3. Resolving any reasonable doubt in the Veteran's favor, his acquired psychiatric disorder, defined as PTSD and claustrophobia with depression and anxiety, is related to his active service. CONCLUSIONS OF LAW 1. The June 2017 rating decision that denied service connection for PTSD is final. 38 U.S.C. § 7104; 38 C.F.R. §§ 20.1100, 20.1104. 2. New and material evidence has been received sufficient to reopen the claim for service connection for PTSD. 38 U.S.C. § 5108; 38 C.F.R. § 3.156(a). 3. The criteria for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, defined as PTSD and claustrophobia with depression and anxiety, have been met. 38 U.S.C. §§ 1110, 1131, 5107; 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.102, 3.303. REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDINGS AND CONCLUSIONS The Veteran served on active duty from January 1971 to November 1972 and from February 1973 to February 1976. In December 2020, the Veteran testified at a hearing before the undersigned Veterans Law Judge (VLJ). A transcript of the hearing has been associated with the Veteran's claims file. New and Material PTSD A claimant may reopen a finally adjudicated claim by submitting new and material evidence. New evidence means existing evidence not previously submitted to agency decisionmakers. Material evidence means existing evidence that, by itself or when considered with previous evidence of record, relates to an unestablished fact necessary to substantiate the claim. New and material evidence can be neither cumulative nor redundant of the evidence of record at the time of the last prior final denial of the claim sought to be reopened and must raise a reasonable possibility of substantiating the claim. 38 U.S.C. § 5108; 38 C.F.R. § 3.156(a). In determining whether evidence is new and material, the credibility of the newly presented evidence is to be presumed. Justus v. Principi, 3 Vet. App. 510 (1992). The Board of Veterans' Appeals (Board) must review all the evidence submitted since the last final disallowance of the claim on any basis in order to determine whether the claim may be reopened. Hickson v. West, 12 Vet. App. 247 (1999). New and material evidence received prior to the expiration of the appeal period will be considered as having been filed in connection with the claim which was pending at the beginning of the appeal period. 38 C.F.R. § 3.156(b). In a June 2017 rating decision, the Regional Office (RO) denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for PTSD. The Veteran did not perfect an appeal on this adverse determination, nor did he submit any additional evidence within the time frame needed to prevent it from becoming final. 38 C.F.R. § 3.156(b); Bond v. Shinseki, 659 F.3d 1362 (Fed. Cir. 2011). Thus, the June 2017 rating decision became final based on the evidence then of record. 38 U.S.C. § 7105; 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.104(a), 20.302, 20.1103. Pertinent evidence added to the record since the June 2017 denial includes a letter from the Veteran's private psychotherapist opining that his PTSD is related to his active service. This evidence is new, not cumulative, and relates to unestablished facts necessary to substantiate the claim. As new and material evidence has been received, the claim for service connection for PTSD is reopened. Service Connection Acquired Psychiatric Disorder Service connection will be granted if the evidence demonstrates that a current disability resulted from an injury or disease incurred in or aggravated by active military service. 38 U.S.C. §§ 1110, 1131; 38 C.F.R. § 3.303. Service connection requires competent evidence showing: (1) the existence of a present disability; (2) in service incurrence or aggravation of a disease or injury; and (3) a causal relationship between the present disability and the disease or injury incurred or aggravated during service. Shedden v. Principi, 381 F.3d 1163 (Fed. Cir. 2004). Additionally, service connection for PTSD requires: (1) medical evidence of a diagnosis of PTSD in accordance with 38 C.F.R. § 4.125(a) (i.e., Diagnostic and Statistical Manual for Mental Disorders); (2) credible supporting evidence that the claimed in-service stressor occurred; and (3) medical evidence of a link between current symptoms and the claimed in-service stressor. 38 C.F.R. § 3.304(f). When there is an approximate balance of positive and negative evidence regarding any issue material to the determination of a matter, VA shall resolve reasonable doubt in favor of the claimant. 38 U.S.C. § 5107(b); 38 C.F.R. § 3.102; Gilbert v. Derwinski, 1 Vet. App. 49 (1990). To deny a claim on its merits, the evidence must preponderate against the claim. Alemany v. Brown, 9 Vet. App. 518 (1996). The Veteran originally sought service connection for claustrophobia and PTSD. When a claimant files a claim for VA benefits, he or she is seeking service connection for symptoms, regardless of how those symptoms are diagnosed or labeled. Clemons v. Shinseki, 23 Vet. App. 1, 5 (2009). In the current matter, the Board has considered both the Veteran's claustrophobia complaints and his PTSD. At the December 2020 hearing, the Veteran testified that he began experiencing symptoms of claustrophobia and PTSD during basic training, after being transported in cattle cars multiple times. He also testified that he did not seek treatment for these symptoms during service, but instead self-medicated with alcohol. His private medical records reflect diagnoses of claustrophobia (by his private neurologist) in 2000 and PTSD (by his private psychotherapist) in 2015. Further, in a November 2020 letter, the Veteran's private psychotherapist opined, based on her clinical assessment, that the Veteran experiences PTSD and claustrophobia secondary to trauma he experienced being transported by cattle cars during his active service. Additionally, the therapist stated that clinical testing reflects that the Veteran also experiences moderate depression and high anxiety, which developed as a result of untreated claustrophobia and PTSD. Based on the above, the Board finds that the evidence is at least in equipoise as to whether the Veteran's acquired psychiatric disorder, defined as PTSD and claustrophobia with depression and anxiety, onset in service. While it is documented in the claims file that the Veteran's in-service stressor of being transported via cattle cars could not be confirmed due to insufficient information, the Board notes that use of cattle cars to transport troops was a known practice during the Veteran's period of service. A such, the Board finds that the evidence is at least in equipoise as to whether the claimed in service stressor occurred. Accordingly, and resolving any reasonable doubt in the Veteran's favor, service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, defined as PTSD and claustrophobia with depression and anxiety, is granted. THERESA M. CATINO Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans' Appeals Attorney for the Board C. Benson, 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.