The Veteran's tinnitus, MDD with alcohol substance abuse, and right ear hearing loss have been granted service connection. However, the effective dates for these conditions are October 11, 2016.,The claims of service connection for tendinitis, left ear hearing loss, glaucoma, a thoracolumbar spine disability, COPD, hypertension, carpal tunnel syndrome, sleep apnea, and stomach ulcer remain pending. Further development is needed to determine the current status of these conditions.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's claims for tinnitus, MDD with alcohol substance abuse, and right ear hearing loss have been granted effective October 11, 2016. However, the claims for other disabilities remain pending as there are outstanding records that need to be reviewed.
- Claimed conditions
- Tinnitus, Major Depressive Disorder with Alcohol Substance Abuse, Right Ear Hearing Loss, Left Ear Hearing Loss, Tendinitis, Glaucoma, Thoracolumbar Spine Disability, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), Hypertension, Carpal Tunnel Syndrome, Sleep Apnea, Stomach Ulcer, Headache Disability
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 20, 2019
- Citation
- 19148606
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,699 · Granted: 17% (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 19148606.
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.
- 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.
- Denied
The Board denied the claim of service connection for hypertension, finding that it did not manifest during service and is not causally related to the Veteran's exposure to herbicides or service.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for hypertension, finding that there was no evidence of a nexus between his current condition and active duty service or herbicide exposure.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for sleep apnea, finding that the evidence did not support a link between the condition and service.
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