The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss and denied his requests for increased ratings for lumbar strain with muscle spasm and soft tissue injury, right lower extremity radiculopathy, and left lower extremity radiculopathy. The effective date for separate ratings of 20% for right lower extremity radiculopathy and 10% for left lower extremity radiculopathy was set at August 21, 2015.
The deciding factor: The evidence did not show current hearing loss disability for VA purposes in either ear. The increase in severity of the Veteran's radiculopathy was not factually ascertainable prior to August 21, 2015.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral hearing loss, lumbar strain with muscle spasm and soft tissue injury, radiculopathy of the right lower extremity, radiculopathy of the left lower extremity
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 40%
- Decision date
- August 5, 2019
- Citation
- 19160490
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 19160490.
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.
- Dismissed
The Veteran withdrew the appeals for service connection for bilateral pes planus, obstructive sleep apnea, bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for multiple conditions, including bilateral hearing loss and various musculoskeletal issues, as well as an initial rating in excess of 0 percent for rhinitis. However, the Board granted a 70 percent rating for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
- Partly granted
The Veteran's tinnitus is granted, while fibromyalgia, internal or external hemorrhoids, bilateral hearing loss, and neuropathy are denied.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss, finding it at least as likely as not related to the Veteran's in-service noise exposure.
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