The Veteran's PTSD is granted and rated at 70 percent, effective from May 24, 2016. Bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, and sleep apnea are also granted. Hypertension remains denied.
The deciding factor: PTSD was found to meet the criteria for a 70% rating based on occupational and social impairment with deficiencies in most areas due to symptoms such as near-continuous depression, ongoing anxiety, mild memory loss, difficulty adapting to stressful circumstances, sporadic suicidal ideation, alcohol abuse, and sleep disturbances.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, hypertension, sleep apnea
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating
- Not verified here — check the original decision
- Decision date
- August 5, 2019
- Citation
- 19160461
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,820 · Granted: 26% (granted or partly granted, in the indexed 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. Read the original VA decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 19160461.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board allowed the benefit or issue identified in this decision. Review the original order: other issues in the same appeal may have a different outcome, and this decision does not predict another claim.
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 Board has remanded the claims for service connection for hypertension and peripheral neuropathy of the bilateral upper and lower extremities due to insufficient medical opinions regarding their etiology.
- 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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