The Veteran's appeal is being remanded for further development, including obtaining updated medical records and a VA examination to assess the severity of his service-connected hearing loss. The TDIU claim will also be addressed in light of any new psychiatric symptoms reported by the Veteran.
The deciding factor: The Board finds that additional evidence and an updated assessment are necessary before deciding the claims.
- Claimed conditions
- Hearing loss, Depressive disorder
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 11, 2018
- Citation
- 1802126
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. Read the original VA decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 1802126.
What this means for you
A remand sends an issue back for more development, often a new examination or missing records. It does not award the benefit or decide the final outcome. The original decision explains the additional work ordered.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's hearing loss and low back strain claims are remanded for further evaluation. The hearing loss claim is denied, while the low back strain claim requires additional examination to determine its severity.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has identified a contradiction in the AOJ's determinations regarding the Veteran's need for aid and assistance, which requires clarification. The remanded issues are entitlement to SMC based on the need for regular aid and attendance of another and on the basis of statutory housebound status.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for hearing loss, finding that the Veteran's current hearing loss disability is not related to military noise exposure and there is no evidence of a nexus between in-service noise exposure and his current condition.
- Granted
The Veteran's entitlement to higher level of SMC at the intermediate rate is granted, effective from January 8, 2021. He was previously in need of aid and attendance due to his left knee disability since February 1, 2017, and now has additional disabilities rated at 50 percent or more.
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