The appeal for service connection for teeth degeneration is dismissed. The application to reopen the claims for service connection for right ear hearing loss and left ear hearing loss are granted, but the claim for service connection for lumbar spine disorder, bilateral hip disorder, bilateral shoulder disorder, heart disorder, and eye disorder remains pending.
The deciding factor: The Veteran withdrew his appeal regarding service connection for teeth degeneration during a hearing. The application to reopen claims for right ear hearing loss and left ear hearing loss is granted as new evidence has been received that relates to an unestablished fact necessary to substantiate the claim of service connection for these conditions.
- Claimed conditions
- Teeth degeneration, Right ear hearing loss, Left ear hearing loss, Lumbar spine disorder, Bilateral hip disorder, Bilateral shoulder disorder, Heart disorder, Eye disorder
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 22, 2019
- Citation
- 19179885
What this means for you
A dismissal means the Board did not decide the issue on its merits — usually because it was withdrawn or had become moot. It says more about procedure than about whether a claim like this can win.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Partly granted
The Board granted a 20 percent rating for the Veteran's left knee strain, service connection for right ear hearing loss, and service connection for a right ankle disorder. Other claims were denied or remanded.
- Partly granted
The Board granted readjudication of previously denied claims for service connection for PTSD and COPD, while remanding other issues including entitlement to service connection for an eye disorder, hypertension, tinnitus, a compensable rating for bilateral hearing loss, TDIU, and an initial rating for PTSD.
- Granted
The Board granted initial ratings of 40 percent for lumbar spine disorder, 70 percent for major depressive disorder, and 40 percent for left lower extremity radiculopathy. TDIU and SMC based on housebound status were also granted.
- Denied
The appeal for higher ratings and effective dates for various conditions was denied, with the exception of left and right lower extremity radiculopathy which were granted an earlier effective date.
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