The Veteran's application to reopen a claim for service connection for sprain, both ankles is granted. The initial compensable rating for bilateral hearing loss disability is denied. The claims of increased ratings for lumbosacral strain with degenerative arthritis (lumbosacral disability), cervical strain, and coronary artery disease (CAD) are remanded. The claims of service connection for left ankle disability, right ankle disability, left hand disability, and right hand disability are also remanded.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's current bilateral hearing loss disability is rated as zero percent disabling under Diagnostic Code 6100 based on the most severe audiometric test results. The VA examinations did not provide all required range of motion testing for joints as per Correia v. McDonald, 28 Vet. App. 158 (2016).
- Claimed conditions
- Sprain, both ankles, Bilateral hearing loss disability, Lumbosacral strain with degenerative arthritis (lumbosacral disability), Cervical strain, Coronary artery disease (CAD), Left ankle disability, Right ankle disability, Left hand disability, Right hand disability
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- June 25, 2019
- Citation
- 19149570
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,454 · 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 19149570.
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 the Veteran's claim for SMC based on aid and attendance from June 1, 2011, to May 24, 2017, finding that his need for regular aid and attendance was not established during this period.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's current coronary artery disease with acute, subacute, or old myocardial infarction with coronary stent is being remanded for further evaluation due to the lack of a medical nexus between his service-connected hypertension and his heart condition.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claims for an initial disability rating in excess of 10 percent for cervical strain, service connection for left leg pain (claimed as joint pain), and service connection for a left ear hearing condition are being remanded due to duty-to-assist errors.
- Denied
The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date of January 10, 1997, for a 10% disability rating for his right ankle disability is denied as there was no CUE in the previous decisions.
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