Entitlement to a disability rating in excess of 50 percent prior to September 20, 2024, for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is denied.

Citation Nr: A26069940 Decision Date: 07/30/26 Archive Date: 07/30/26 DOCKET NO. 251107-605345 DATE: July 30, 2026 ORDER Entitlement to a disability rating in excess of 50 percent prior to September 20, 2024, for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is denied. FINDING OF FACT Prior to September 20, 2024, the Veteran's PTSD manifested with occupational and social impairment with reduced reliability and productivity, but without occupational and social impairment with deficiencies in most areas such as work, school, family relations, judgment, thinking, or mood. CONCLUSION OF LAW The criteria for entitlement to a disability rating in excess of 50 percent prior to September 20, 2024, for PTSD have not been met. 38 U.S.C. §§ 1155, 5107; 38 C.F.R. §§ 4.1, 4.3, 4.7, 4.126, 4.130, Diagnostic Code 9411. REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDING AND CONCLUSION The Veteran had active duty service from August 1976 to August 1979. The issues are on appeal from a higher level review rating decision issued in May 2025. The Veteran submitted a notice of disagreement in November 2025 electing the direct review lane. Therefore, the Board may only consider the evidence of record at the time of the February 2025 agency of original jurisdiction (AOJ) decision, which was subsequently subject to higher-level review. 38 C.F.R. § 20.301. If evidence was submitted during the period after the AOJ issued the decision, which was subsequently subject to higher-level review the Board did not consider it in its decision. 38 C.F.R. §§ 20.300, 20.301, 20.801. If the Veteran would like VA to consider any evidence that was submitted that the Board could not consider, the Veteran may file a Supplemental Claim (VA Form 20-0995) and submit or identify this evidence. 38 C.F.R. § 3.2501. If the evidence is new and relevant, VA will issue another decision on the claim, considering the new evidence in addition to the evidence previously considered. Id. Specific instructions for filing a Supplemental Claim are included with this decision. Entitlement to a disability rating in excess of 50 percent prior to September 20, 2024, for PTSD. The Veteran contends that he is entitled to an earlier effective date for the assignment of his 70 percent disability rating. As the Veteran has continuously pursued the issue from his original claim in October 2022, the issue is not one of an earlier effective date, but rather a question of staged ratings. Therefore, the issue has been characterized as entitlement to a disability rating in excess of 50 percent prior to September 20, 2024. As the Veteran has not submitted a disagreement with the 70 percent disability rating assigned after September 20, 2024, the Board will not address that period. Therefore, the period on appeal is from October 2022 to September 2024. Mental disorders are rated under the General Rating Formula for Mental Disorders pursuant to 38 C.F.R. § 4.130. The evaluation is "symptom-driven," meaning that "symptomatology should be the fact-finder's primary focus when deciding entitlement to a given disability rating". See Vazquez-Claudio v. Shinseki, 713 F.3d 112, 116-117 (Fed. Cir. 2013). However, the symptoms listed in the various levels of the General Rating Formula for Mental Disorders are not exhaustive, meaning the presence of all, most, or even some of the enumerated symptoms are not required to assign a particular rating. Mauerhan v. Principi, 16 Vet. App. 436, 442 (2002). In addition, a "holistic analysis" must be conducted that considers all associated symptoms, regardless of whether they are listed as criteria. Bankhead v. Shulkin, 29 Vet. App. 10, 22 (2017). Further, the "frequency, severity, and duration of psychiatric symptoms, the length of remissions, and the Veteran's capacity for adjustment during periods of remission" must be considered, and a rating must be assigned based on all the evidence of record that bears on occupational and social impairment rather than solely on the examiner's assessment of the level of disability at the moment of the examination. 38 C.F.R. § 4.126(a). The General Rating Formula for Mental Disorders provides a noncompensable rating when a mental condition has been formally diagnosed, but the associated symptoms are not severe enough either to interfere with occupational and social functioning or to require continuous medication. 38 C.F.R. § 4.130. A 50 percent rating is warranted for occupational and social impairment with reduced reliability and productivity due to such symptoms as flattened affect; circumstantial, circumlocutory, or stereotyped speech; panic attacks more than once a week; difficulty in understanding complex commands; impairment of short and long-term memory (e.g., retention of only highly learned material, forgetting to complete tasks); impaired judgment; impaired abstract thinking; disturbances of motivation and mood; or difficulty in establishing and maintaining effective work and social relationships. A 70 percent rating is warranted for occupational and social impairment with deficiencies in most areas, such as work, school, family relations, judgment, thinking, or mood, due to such symptoms as suicidal ideation; obsessional rituals which interfere with routine activities; intermittently illogical, obscure, or irrelevant speech; near-continuous panic or depression affecting the ability to function independently, appropriately and effectively; impaired impulse control (such as unprovoked irritability with periods of violence); spatial disorientation; neglect of personal appearance and hygiene; difficulty in adapting to stressful circumstances (including work or a worklike setting); or inability to establish and maintain effective relationships. A 100 percent rating is warranted for total occupational and social impairment due to such symptoms as: gross impairment in thought processes or communication; persistent delusions or hallucinations; grossly inappropriate behavior; persistent danger of hurting self or others; intermittent inability to perform activities of daily living (including maintenance of minimal personal hygiene); disorientation to time or place; or memory loss for names of close relatives, own occupation or own name. 38 C.F.R. § 4.130. The Board notes that it has reviewed all the evidence in the record relevant to the period on review. This includes VA examinations, as well as VAMC treatment notes and lay evidence, to include the Veteran's October 2022 statement describing his symptoms. Although the Board has an obligation to provide adequate reasons and bases supporting its decision, there is no requirement that the Board discuss every piece of evidence in the record. Hence, the Board will summarize the relevant evidence, as deemed appropriate, and the Board's analysis will focus on what the evidence shows, or fails to show, as to the claims. See Gonzalez v. West, 218 F.3d 1378, 1380-81 (Fed. Cir. 2000). The Board concludes that the Veteran's symptoms did not cause the level of impairment required for a disability rating of 70 percent or higher. The Veteran's symptoms more closely approximated the symptoms associated with a 50 percent rating, and resulted in a level of impairment that most closely approximated the level of impairment associated with a 50 percent rating. VA treatment records, the March 2023 VA examination, and the Veteran's lay statements show that the Veteran's PTSD manifested with symptoms associated with a 50 percent rating to include impaired judgment, disturbances of motivation and mood, self-described panic attacks, and difficulty in establishing and maintaining effective work and social relationships, and symptoms associated with a 70 percent rating to include impaired impulse control. The Veteran also had symptoms that are not listed with a specific rating, such as avoidance, hypervigilance, and recurrent distressing memories. The Board finds the severity, frequency, and duration of the Veteran's unlisted symptoms more closely approximate the symptoms contemplated by a 50 percent rating, which are less severe, less frequent, and shorter in duration than those contemplated by a 70 percent rating. See 38 C.F.R. § 4.126. Further, the Veteran's avoidance, hypervigilance, and recurrent distressing memories are similar to disturbances of motivation and mood, which are contemplated by the assigned 50 percent rating. The Board also finds the level of impairment caused by the Veteran's symptoms more closely approximates the level associated with a 50 percent rating. While the Veteran reported issues, he also reported that he has resided with his longtime partner for 17 years. Additionally, the Veteran reported he had been employed with the VA for 16 years and while he has problems with his coworkers he has a good reputation with the Veterans. As such, the Veteran experienced occupational and social impairment with reduced reliability and productivity as noted by the October 2023 VA examiner. While the Veteran did experience a symptom contemplated by a 70 percent rating, specifically impaired impulse control, the evidence overall does not demonstrate the level of impairment associated with a 70 percent rating. As noted above, the Veteran's other remaining symptoms were either contemplated by or more consistent with a 50 percent rating. In short, the evidence of record persuasively weighs against a finding that the severity, frequency, and duration of the Veteran's symptoms resulted in the level of impairment required for a 70 percent rating. The criteria for a 70 percent or higher rating are not met during this period, and the appeal must be denied. D. SMART Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans' Appeals Attorney for the Board Veresink, Patricia 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.