Hearing loss decisions — 2020

The Veteran's claims for peripheral neuropathy of the upper left and right extremities, hypertension, cerebrovascular accident (CVA), tinnitus, bilateral hearing loss, and fibromyalgia are all denied as there is no current disability at any time pertinent to the claim on appeal. The Veteran’s service connection claim for hypertension is remanded due to in-service exposure to herbicides.

The Veteran's initial claim for a compensable rating for service-connected bilateral hearing loss was denied as his hearing acuity did not meet the criteria for a compensable rating under VA regulations.

The Board has granted service connection for tinnitus, a low back disorder (including IVDS), and left ear hearing loss. The claims were reopened due to new evidence submitted since the last final denial.

The Veteran's application to reopen his claim for service connection for diabetes mellitus was granted. Service connection is also granted for type II diabetes mellitus, but the claims for left and right ear hearing loss are denied.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss disability and tinnitus. The claim for service connection for a psychiatric disorder, to include PTSD, is remanded.,There are no specific ratings or effective dates provided in this decision.

The Board has restored service connection for tinnitus and bilateral hearing loss, which were previously severed. Service connection for onychomycosis of the big toenails is also granted.

The Veteran withdrew his appeals for increased ratings in excess of 20 percent for degenerative arthritis and disc disease of the lumbar spine prior to August 3, 2017, and 40 percent since, as well as for bilateral hearing loss.

The Board denied service connection for tinnitus and bilateral hearing loss, finding no evidence of a current disability or link to active duty.

The Veteran's appeal for an earlier effective date for service connection of left ear hearing loss is dismissed.,Service connection has been granted for tinnitus.

The Veteran's service-connected bilateral hearing loss is currently rated as noncompensable, with a speech discrimination score of 96 and average pure tone thresholds below the threshold for compensable ratings.

The Veteran requested to withdraw his appeal on the claims of service connection for hearing loss and tinnitus disabilities. As a result, the Board dismissed these claims.

The Veteran's claims for increased ratings of CAD, DMII, and BLEDN, as well as service connection for hypertension were denied. The Board found that the evidence did not support higher ratings or service connection.

The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for service connection of bilateral hearing loss was denied as he did not file a claim prior to June 29, 2017.

The Board has denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for bilateral hearing loss as there is no evidence of a nexus between his claimed condition and active duty service.

The Board has denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss and left ear disability, finding that the evidence does not support a link between these conditions and military service.

The Veteran's claims of service connection for various conditions have been granted, with tinnitus presumed to have been incurred in service and the other conditions having their service connections established on a presumptive basis.

The Veteran's appeal was dismissed due to his death, and the Board has no jurisdiction to adjudicate the merits of this appeal at this time.

The Veteran's need for aid and attendance was not due to service-connected disabilities, but rather due to nonservice-connected conditions like dementia, ischemic cardiomyopathy, and cerebral infarction. The Board found the criteria for SMC based on the need for regular aid and attendance or housebound status were not met.

The Board has granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that these conditions are causally related to the Veteran's in-service noise exposure.

The Veteran's claim for a compensable disability rating for bilateral hearing loss prior to January 22, 2020, and a disability rating in excess of 10 percent thereafter was denied. The effective dates for the noncompensable disability rating and the 10 percent disability rating are proper.