The Board has denied the Veteran's claims for increased ratings for bilateral hearing loss and esophageal stricture with achalasia, but has remanded the issue of service connection for ameloblastoma as secondary to achalasia.
The deciding factor: The evidence did not support a compensable evaluation for bilateral hearing loss or an effective date prior to May 27, 2015 for the grant of a 50 percent evaluation for esophageal stricture with achalasia. The issue of service connection for ameloblastoma was remanded due to insufficient evidence.
- Claimed conditions
- Bilateral Hearing Loss, Esophageal Stricture with Achalasia, Ameloblastoma
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- February 28, 2019
- Citation
- 19114890
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 961 · Granted: 20% (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 19114890.
What this means for you
A remand is not a loss. The Board sent the case back for more development — often a new exam or missing records — before making a final decision. Many remands later end in a grant, and the decision spells out exactly what the Board wanted to see.
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 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.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for bilateral hearing loss, finding that there was no evidence of a nexus between his current hearing loss and his active service. The Board noted that while he had complaints of earaches in service, these did not indicate a current disability.
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