The Veteran's claims for service connection for bronchitis, allergic rhinitis, GERD, and TBI were denied. Service connection was granted for cervical spine disability with a 10% rating effective July 16, 2009, and lumbar spine disability with a 10% rating prior to November 28, 2011, and a 20% rating thereafter.
The deciding factor: The Veteran did not provide sufficient evidence of current disabilities for service connection. The VA examinations provided no evidence of the claimed conditions at the time of examination or in the post-service period.
- Claimed conditions
- Bilateral Hearing Loss, Bronchitis, Headaches, Allergic Rhinitis, Gastroesophageal Reflux Disorder (GERD), Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI), Sleep Apnea, Cervical Spine Disability, Lumbar Spine Disability (prior to November 28, 2011), Lumbar Spine Disability (after November 28, 2011)
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- September 12, 2014
- Citation
- 1440788
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 1440788.
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 Veteran's bilateral hearing loss is granted as service-connected. The claims for alcohol abuse and psychiatric disorder are remanded for additional development, including a VA examination to determine the nature and etiology of these conditions.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the case due to a need for a new VA examination to assess the current severity of the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss. The issue remains under direct service connection theory.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for sleep apnea, finding that the evidence did not support a link between the condition and service.
- Denied
The Veteran's hearing loss was rated at 30 percent, the highest non-compensable rating available. The Board found that his hearing loss did not warrant a higher rating based on VA examinations and medical records.
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