The Veteran's appeal of the increased rating for tinnitus is dismissed.,The Veteran’s claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss, an acquired psychiatric disorder (including major depressive disorder and PTSD), a neck condition, obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), right shoulder condition, left shoulder condition, right arm condition, hypertension, low back condition, and bilateral foot condition are remanded.,The Veteran wishes to withdraw his appeal of the increased rating for tinnitus. The claim is dismissed.
The deciding factor: The Veteran stated at his May 2019 Board hearing that he wished to withdraw the appeal of his claim for an increased rating for tinnitus, and his statement was reduced to writing in the hearing transcript.,The Veteran’s bilateral hearing loss has worsened since the last VA examination in April 2015. A new VA examination is necessary to evaluate the current severity of his bilateral hearing loss.,New evidence reflecting a diagnosis of major depressive disorder is material, as it relates to an unestablished fact necessary to substantiate the claim for service connection for PTSD and any other acquired psychiatric disorders that may come to light. The Veteran’s claims for service connection for hypertension and disabilities of the right arm and left hand are reopened.,Verification of Service Dates: Active duty for training (ACDUTRA) dates from 1962 to 1994 need to be verified as they were not previously recorded in the VA records. A remand is necessary to seek and obtain such records.,The Veteran’s back condition was last evaluated at a February 2016 VA examination, which did not account for his report of back pain from the time of his in-service injury to the present. The claim for service connection for a low back disability is remanded.
- Claimed conditions
- tinnitus, bilateral hearing loss, acquired psychiatric disorder (including major depressive disorder, posttraumatic stress disorder), neck condition, obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), right shoulder condition, left shoulder condition, right arm condition, hypertension, low back condition, bilateral foot condition
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 5, 2019
- Citation
- 19183545
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,934 · Granted: 41% (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 19183545.
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.
- 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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