The Board has granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus effective from October 7, 2011. The May 18, 2012 rating decision was found to contain legal error in the assignment of probative value to evidence so as to not constitute a reasonable exercise of rating judgment.
The deciding factor: The evidence at the time of the May 18, 2012 rating decision was in equipoise on whether the diagnosed hearing loss and tinnitus were related to service due to noise exposure. The Board found clear error in the assignment of probative value to the VA examiner's findings.
- Claimed conditions
- Bilateral Hearing Loss, Tinnitus
- How they argued it
- Reopened with new and material evidence
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 100%
- Decision date
- March 17, 2017
- Citation
- 1708200
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 1708200.
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 service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that the Veteran's current conditions are not related to his military service.
- 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 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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