The Veteran is granted a total disability rating based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities, including bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, cervical strain, lumbar strain with degenerative arthritis, and left knee disability. The decision also acknowledges the Veteran's inability to secure or follow a substantially gainful occupation as a result of these conditions.
The deciding factor: The evidence shows that the Veteran is unable to work due to his service-connected disabilities, including severe knee pain, hearing loss, tinnitus, neck and back issues, which significantly limit his ability to perform physical labor.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, cervical strain, lumbar strain with degenerative arthritis, left knee disability
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 30%
- Decision date
- January 8, 2019
- Citation
- 19101690
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,757 · Granted: 23% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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 19101690.
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.
- 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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's appeal is remanded for additional development, including a new VA examination to assess his bilateral knee and hip disabilities.
- 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.
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