Citation Nr: 22040198 Decision Date: 07/13/22 Archive Date: 07/13/22 DOCKET NO. 19-20 420 DATE: July 13, 2022 ORDER Entitlement to an effective date of December 2, 2004, for service connection for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is granted. FINDINGS OF FACT 1. On December 2, 2004, VA received the Veteran's claim for service connection or PTSD. 2. In a February 2008 rating decision, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO) denied service connection for PTSD and depression; the Veteran did not appeal the decision and new and material evidence was not received within the one-year appeal period. 3. The Veteran's PTSD claim was denied in part because his stressor had not been corroborated. 4. On December 22, 2010, VA received a claim from the Veteran for to reopen service connection for bladder; the Veteran's claim was reopened and granted service connection in May 2017. 5. In April 2017, VA received corroboration of the Veteran's stressor from the United States Navy which previously existed but had not been associated with the claims file. CONCLUSION OF LAW The criteria for an effective date of December 2, 2004, for service connection for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) have been met. 38 U.S.C. § 5110 (2012); 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.151, 3.155 (2014), 3.400 REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDINGS AND CONCLUSION The Veteran served on active duty from October 1996 to November 2000. This matter is before the Board of Veterans' Appeals (Board) on appeal of a July 2018 rating decision by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO). In February 2020, the Veteran appeared at a hearing before the undersigned Veterans Law Judge. A transcript of the hearing is in the record. The effective date for service connection for the Veteran's PTSD is December 22, 2010, the date the Veteran filed the current claim. The question before the Board is whether an earlier effective date should be awarded. Governing law provides that the effective date for a grant of service connection is the day after separation from service or day entitlement arose, if a claim is received within one year after separation from service, otherwise the date of receipt of claim, or the day entitlement arose, whichever is later. 38 U.S.C. § 5110 (b)(1); 38 C.F.R. § 3.400 (b)(2)(i). The Veteran, however, does not argue or contend that he filed a claim for service connection for PTSD within one year after separation. Therefore, the issue before the Board is the earliest date of receipt of the claim. The date of receipt of a claim is the date on which a claim, information, or evidence is received by VA. 38 C.F.R. § 3.1 (r). Except as otherwise provided, the effective date of an award of compensation based on a claim reopened after final disallowance, will be the date of receipt of the claim or the date entitlement arose, whichever is the later. 38 U.S.C. § 5110; 38 C.F.R. § 3.400. A decision of a duly constituted rating agency shall be final and binding on all field offices of the Department of Veterans Affairs as to conclusions based on the evidence on file at the time VA issues written notification. 38 C.F.R. § 3.104. Under 38 U.S.C. §§ 5108, 7105(c), a rating decision that is not appealed is final and may not be reopened unless new and material evidence is presented. The Veteran first filed a service connection claim for PTSD and for depression on December 2, 2004. The RO denied the claims in a February 2008 rating decision with notice of his appellate rights. The Veteran did not appeal the decision or submit new and material evidence within one year of the decision. 38 C.F.R. § 3.104. Therefore, by operation of law, the decision is final. 38 U.S.C. § 7105. Thereafter, VA will readjudicate a previously denied claim if new and material evidence is presented or secured. 38 U.S.C. § 5108 (a); 38 C.F.R. § 3.156 (d). The effective date of an award based on a claim reopened after a final adjudication shall be fixed in accordance with the facts found but shall not be earlier than the date of receipt of the application. 38 U.S.C. § 5110 (a); 38 C.F.R. § 3.400 (q)(2). In this instance, based only on the foregoing facts, the Veteran filed the claim to reopen on December 22, 2010, which is the effective date assigned by the RO based upon § 3.400 (q)(2). There is, however, an exception to the finality of a rating decision denying service connection for a disability. At any time after VA issues a decision on a claim, if VA receives or associates with the claims file relevant official service department records that existed but were not associated with the claims file when VA first decided the claim, VA will reconsider the claim, rather than requiring new and material evidence. 38 C.F.R. § 3.156 (c)(1). Under this regulation, should an award be granted, it will be effective the date the previously decided claim was received or the date entitlement arose, whichever is later. To be considered relevant, service department records must speak to a matter in dispute and thus bear on the outcome of the case. Kisor v. Wilkie, 995 F.3d 1316, 1322 (Fed. Cir. 2020). Reconsideration requires that VA reassess the original decision in the light of the newly received service department records, George v. Shulkin, 29 Vet. App. 199, 205 (2018), and an earlier effective date is only available if the grant is based at least in part on the newly received records, Jones v. Wilkie, 964 F.3d 1374, 1379 (Fed. Cir. 2020). In this instance, the Veteran reported a service stressor for his PTSD. While stationed in Okinawa, Japan, a helicopter crashed killing all crew members. The Veteran served in the same unit and knew them. When the RO denied the Veteran's original claims in February 2008, the file did contain confirmation of the helicopter crash, but it appears that information came from a private website, not any service documentation. The RO denied the Veteran's PTSD claim in part because there was no evidence corroborating his stressor. After the Veteran filed his current claim, the RO received a document from the United States Navy Safety Center confirming the helicopter crash occurring in April 1999. The RO then granted the Veteran's claim relying upon verification of the PTSD stressor. The Board finds 38 C.F.R. § 3.156 (c) applies. The additional service records existed when the RO issued the February 2008 rating decision but were not obtained by VA until April 2017. In light of the above analysis, the Board determines that the grant of service connection in this case should be retroactive to the filing of the original claim for service connection. Accordingly, the Board finds that the effective date of service connection for PTSD is December 2, 2004. L. M. BARNARD Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans' Appeals Attorney for the Board Russell P. Veldenz, 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.