Citation Nr: 25005502
Decision Date: 04/23/25	Archive Date: 04/23/25

DOCKET NO. 23-00 180A
                                                                        DATE: April 23, 2025

ORDER

Entitlement to service connection for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is dismissed as moot.

Entitlement to service connection for alcohol use disorder is dismissed as moot.

REMANDED

Entitlement to an initial compensable rating for tinea pedis is remanded.

FINDINGS OF FACT

1. The appeal for entitlement to service connection for PTSD to include as was granted in a March 2024 rating decision. The full benefit sought having been granted, service connection for PTSD, is moot.

2. The appeal for entitlement to service connection for alcohol use disorder was granted in a March 2024 rating decision. The full benefit sought having been granted, service connection for alcohol use disorder, is moot.

CONCLUSIONS OF LAW

1. The criteria for dismissal of the claim for PTSD have been met as there remains no case or controversy on appeal. 38 U.S.C. § 7105; 38 C.F.R. § 20.205.

2. The criteria for dismissal of the claim for alcohol use disorder have been met as there remains no case or controversy on appeal. 38 U.S.C. § 7105; 38 C.F.R. § 20.205

REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDINGS AND CONCLUSIONS

The Veteran served on active duty from July 1997 to December 2001.

This case comes 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).

The Board notes the Veteran has requested a hearing, but then in June and November 2022, the Veteran stated he no longer wanted a hearing. The case is now before the Board.

Service Connection

1. Entitlement to service connection for PTSD

2. Entitlement to service connection for alcohol use disorder

The Board may dismiss any appeal which fails to allege a specific error of fact or law in the determination being appealed. 38 U.S.C. § 7105.

The Board finds that the Veteran's appeal for service connection for PTSD and alcohol use disorder is moot. In the March 2024 rating decision, the AOJ granted service connection for PTSD with alcohol use.

The Board has considered, in an effort to maximize the benefit for the Veteran, whether the effective date for service connection assigned by the AOJ, although not specifically on appeal, is appropriate. Except as otherwise provided, the effective date of an evaluation and award of compensation based on an original claim will be the date of receipt of the claim or the date entitlement arose, whichever is later. 38 U.S.C. § 5110; 38 C.F.R. § 3.400.

Here, the assigned effective date for service connection of these disabilities is March 30, 2018 which is the date the AOJ received the Veteran's initial claim for entitlement to service connection for a mental health condition. The record does not indicate an intent to file a claim was received by the AOJ in the twelve months prior to the receipt of the March 30, 2018 claim for entitlement to service connection. Thus, the record indicates the earliest effective date for service connection for these disabilities is March 30, 2018 which is the date the initial claim for service connection was received. 38 U.S.C. § 5110; 38 C.F.R. § 3.400.

As service connection for PTSD with alcohol use has been granted, and the assigned effective date is the date the AOJ received the Veteran's initial claim for entitlement to service connection for these disabilities, the total grant of benefits sought on appeal has been awarded.

Thus, there is no case or controversy currently before the Board. This appeal is dismissed as moot. See, Grantham v. Brown, 114 F.3d 1156, 1159 (Fed. Cir. 1997).

REASONS FOR REMAND

1. Entitlement to an initial compensable rating for tinea pedis

The Veteran was issued a statement of the case (SOC) in April 2023. Since that time and before the appeal was transferred to the Board, evidence was added to the Veteran's file. 

As the additional relevant medical records and examinations are VA-generated, and because these records were received after the most recent AOJ adjudication but before transfer of the case to the Board, remand is required for the records to be reviewed by the RO in a supplemental statement of the case (SSOC). 38 C.F.R. §§ 19.31, 19.37

The matter is REMANDED for the following action:

1. Review the additional evidence received since the April 2023 SOC, complete any development deemed necessary in light of the new evidence, and readjudicate the claim. If the benefits sought remain denied, provide an SSOC to the Veteran and an appropriate period in which to respond. Then, return the appeals to the Board.

 

 

Christopher Seppanen

Veterans Law Judge

Board of Veterans' Appeals

Attorney for the Board	D. Hetman

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.