The Board denied the Veteran's claims for an effective date prior to January 9, 2005 for a 10% disability rating for tinnitus and for a compensable evaluation for bilateral hearing loss. The effective date of the award for tinnitus was fixed at January 9, 2005, based on liberalizing changes in VA regulations. For hearing loss, there is no assigned rating or effective date.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's claims were denied as he did not submit a formal or informal claim prior to January 9, 2006 for an increased rating for tinnitus and the current schedular criteria do not meet the requirements for a compensable evaluation for bilateral hearing loss.
- Claimed conditions
- tinnitus, bilateral hearing loss
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 21, 2011
- Citation
- 1111032
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 1111032.
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.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeal for service connection of bilateral hearing loss and a ruptured right ear drum was dismissed due to the death of the Veteran.
- Denied
The Board found that the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss was noted upon entry into active duty service and did not increase in severity during service. Therefore, it denied his claim for service connection.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for hearing loss, tinnitus, and an acquired psychiatric disorder due to incomplete medical records and need for further examination.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for tinnitus, arthritis, and memory loss. The decision found no evidence linking these conditions to his military service.
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