The Veteran's claim for an initial rating in excess of 20 percent for bilateral hearing loss was denied. The Board found that the evidence did not support a higher rating, as the Veteran's hearing acuity levels were at Level V and Level VI in his right ear and left ear respectively, which equates to a 20 percent disability rating under Diagnostic Code (DC) 6100.
The deciding factor: The preponderance of the evidence did not support an increase in the Veteran's hearing loss rating beyond 20 percent as the audiometric findings were at Level V and Level VI, which equates to a 20 percent disability rating under DC 6100.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral hearing loss
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 20%
- Decision date
- November 21, 2019
- Citation
- 19187824
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.
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- Denied
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- 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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