Tinnitus (ringing in the ears) decisions — 2020

The Veteran's PTSD is rated at 50% prior to June 27, 2017. The Board finds that a higher rating is not warranted.,The Veteran does not meet the criteria for TDIU as his service-connected disabilities do not combine to result in a combined rating of 70% or more.

The Board denied claims for service connection for tinnitus and bilateral hearing loss, as well as nonservice-connected death pension benefits. The decision found that the Veteran did not have a current disability or evidence of a causal relationship to his military service.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities, including his lumbar spine disorder and GERD, prevented him from securing or following a substantially gainful occupation prior to January 12, 2018. The issue of service connection for GERD secondary to the lumbar spine disorder is remanded.

The Board has granted service connection for bilateral tinnitus, finding that the Veteran's current tinnitus began during service and has continued since. The decision is based on the Veteran's credible report of symptoms occurring in service.

The Board has remanded the cases for issuance of a Statement of the Case (SOC) and for obtaining an addendum opinion regarding the etiology of the residuals of a stroke. The issues of hypertension, tinnitus, and the residuals of a stroke on a secondary basis are being returned to the agency of original jurisdiction (AOJ).

The Veteran's appeal for service connection for sleep apnea has been withdrawn. The Board granted the Veteran's TDIU claim for the period of March 17, 2014 to October 1, 2018 due to his service-connected disabilities.

The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss is currently rated as noncompensable prior to April 8, 2016 and at a 10 percent rating since that date. The Board found no basis for higher ratings.,The Veteran's tinnitus has been assigned the maximum schedular rating of 10 percent throughout the period on appeal.

The Veteran's claims for service connection were dismissed due to his death, as there is no pending appeal at the time of his death.

The Board has granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that the evidence is at least in equipoise as to whether these conditions were incurred during military service.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities do not render him unable to secure or follow a substantially gainful occupation, and his claim for an extraschedular total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU) is denied.

The Board has granted the Veteran's claim for service connection for tinnitus, finding that there is as likely as not a relationship between the current disability and his service, including noise exposure.

The Board has granted the Veteran's claim for service connection for tinnitus, finding that it is at least as likely as not incurred or related to his already service-connected hearing loss.

The Board found that the Veteran's VA Form 9 was untimely and denied his claims for service connection due to lack of timely appeal.

The Board has granted service connection for tinnitus, but denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss disability. Tinnitus was related to noise exposure in service and is considered a chronic disease under VA regulations. Bilateral hearing loss was not shown during service or within the applicable presumptive period.

The Board denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that the Veteran's current conditions are not related to his military service.

The Veteran's TDIU claim is granted as he has been rendered unable to secure and maintain substantially gainful employment due to his service-connected disabilities. The Veteran also withdrew his increased rating for PTSD, and the Board does not have jurisdiction over the sleep apnea issue.

The Board has decided to remand the Veteran's claims of service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus due to insufficient opinions in the VA examination reports. The claims will be further evaluated with additional evidence and an addendum opinion.

The Board has granted the Veteran's claim for service connection for tinnitus, finding that there is at least equipoise evidence to support a finding of in-service incurrence and continuity of symptomatology.

The Board denied service connection for Meniere's syndrome, bilateral hearing loss, and tinnitus as the evidence did not establish a nexus to active military service.

The Veteran's effective date for additional compensation based on his spouse is denied as he did not receive a combined disability rating of at least 30% until February 19, 2018.