The Veteran's claims for increased ratings were denied as his conditions did not meet the criteria for higher disability ratings under applicable VA regulations.
The deciding factor: The medical evidence did not support the assignment of higher disability ratings based on the severity and nature of the Veteran’s conditions, which were rated according to their direct service connection without any presumption or secondary considerations.
- Claimed conditions
- Bilateral Hearing Loss, Tinnitus, Dermatitis, Diabetes Mellitus, Type II (DM), Right Lower Extremity Femoral Nerve Peripheral Neuropathy (PN), Left Lower Extremity Femoral Nerve PN, Right Upper Extremity Peripheral Neuropathy (PN), Left Upper Extremity Peripheral Neuropathy (PN), Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA)
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 8, 2019
- Citation
- 19126478
What this means for you
A denial is a starting point, not the end of the road. You can see why this claim fell short — and, if you are still inside the one-year window, the appeal lanes that may remain open to you.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for obstructive sleep apnea, left knee disability, and right knee disability. The claims for urinary frequency disability and residuals of a cholecystectomy were denied.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that the Veteran's conditions are related to in-service noise exposure.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for a compensable rating for bilateral hearing loss, an initial rating in excess of 50 percent for PTSD, entitlement to TDIU, and SMC based on housebound status.
- Partly granted
The Board granted an effective date of May 17, 2019, for a 70 percent disability rating for PTSD but denied earlier effective dates for service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus.
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