The Board denied the veteran's claim for service connection for bilateral hearing disability, finding that his claim was not well-grounded and denying it on the merits.
The deciding factor: The RO found that the veteran's claim was not well-grounded and denied it on the merits.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral hearing disability
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 9, 2004
- Citation
- 0400746
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 3,038 · Granted: 30% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
This is a plain-language summary generated by AI from a public Board of Veterans’ Appeals decision. It can contain errors — always verify against the original. Look up the original decision on VA.gov (opens in a new tab) using citation 0400746.
What this means for you
A denial is a starting point, not the end of the road. You can see why this claim fell short — and, if you are still inside the one-year window, the appeal lanes that may remain open to you.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection due to credibility issues with his testimony and lack of supporting medical evidence. The case is being returned for additional development, including obtaining records from the Army National Guard period, left knee surgery records, clarification on TERA exposure details, and a new opinion regarding prostate cancer.
- Partly granted
The veteran's skin cancer is service-connected due to Agent Orange exposure, but the hearing disability rating was not increased.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing disability, left hip disability, right hip disability, and left elbow disability due to insufficient evidence of a current disability. The Veteran is also being asked to provide more information regarding his exposure at Camp Lejeune.
- Granted
The Board has determined that the Veteran's bilateral hearing disability, including left ear hearing loss, is related to service and aggravated by service. The decision grants service connection for these conditions.
Free starter guide for your own claim
Reading this because you were denied or under-rated? Get the plain-English next steps — your appeal options, the deadline that protects you, and how appeals like yours turn out. One email, no spam.
We will only use this to send the guide. No spam, unsubscribe any time. We never sell your information.
We are not the VA. Veterans’ Rights is an independent resource built for veterans. We are not the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, not part of the government, and not endorsed by any government agency.
This is general information, not legal advice. For advice about your own situation, talk to a VA-accredited representative — many help for free.