The Board has granted reopening of the claim for service connection for left ear hearing loss and denied reopening of the claim for right ear hearing loss. Service connection is presumed for diabetes mellitus as it became manifest within a year after separation from service. The Veteran's ED is proximately due to his service-connected diabetes mellitus.
The deciding factor: The evidence submitted since July 1994 includes statements from the Veteran and VA treatment records, which indicate that the Veteran's hearing loss has worsened and now meets the criteria for a disability rating.
- Claimed conditions
- Left Ear Hearing Loss, Right Ear Hearing Loss
- How they argued it
- Presumptive (no nexus needed)
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 19, 2015
- Citation
- 1548751
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 1548751.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.
What you can do next
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 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 right ear hearing loss disability was not incurred in service and is less likely than not caused by noise exposure during his military service.
- 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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