The veteran's claim for increased ratings for bilateral hearing loss and low back disability has been denied. The RO reduced the rating for bilateral hearing loss to noncompensable effective January 1, 2002, based on sustained improvement in his hearing impairment. For the low back disability, there is insufficient evidence from recent VA examinations to determine if a diagnosis of degenerative disc disease was made or if neurological examination results were provided.
The deciding factor: The most recent VA examinations did not provide sufficient information regarding the etiology and severity of the veteran's symptoms for rating purposes.
- Claimed conditions
- Bilateral Hearing Loss, Low Back Disability
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 21, 2006
- Citation
- 0608130
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.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that the Veteran's conditions are related to in-service noise exposure.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for a compensable rating for bilateral hearing loss, an initial rating in excess of 50 percent for PTSD, entitlement to TDIU, and SMC based on housebound status.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for asbestosis, bronchitis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), rhinitis, sinusitis, and asthma. The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss was also denied a compensable rating.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for various disabilities and denied higher ratings for several service-connected conditions.
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