The veteran's death was not service-connected, but the Board found that he did not meet the criteria for entitlement to DIC under 38 U.S.C.A. § 1318 as his disability had not been rated at 100% for ten years prior to his death.
The deciding factor: The veteran's left ear hearing loss was rated at 100% effective September 21, 1993, and he did not meet the criteria for entitlement to DIC as his disability had not been rated at 100% continuously for ten years prior to death.
- Claimed conditions
- Left Ear Hearing Loss, Malaria, Otitis Externa
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 10%
- Decision date
- June 13, 2006
- Citation
- 0617265
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 0617265.
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Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claims of service connection for right ear hearing loss and a compensable rating for left ear hearing loss, finding that there was no evidence to support these claims based on in-service noise exposure or other theories.
- Granted
The Veteran is granted higher levels of SMC and aid and attendance special monthly compensation effective May 3, 2024, due to his service-connected conditions that require regular aid and assistance.
- Granted
The Veteran was granted a TDIU with a September 19, 2024 effective date based on his PTSD, emphysema, and COPD symptoms. His diabetes, tinnitus, and left ear hearing loss were not found to prevent him from securing or following a substantially gainful occupation prior to March 19, 2024.
- Denied
The Veteran's service-connected disabilities did not prevent him from securing or following a substantially gainful occupation prior to August 31, 2020.
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