The Veteran's tinnitus and bilateral hearing loss are granted as service connected.,The Veteran's hepatitis B is remanded for further development due to conflicting medical opinions.,Service connection for hepatitis B will be considered based on the Veteran's in-service exposure, but additional evidence is needed.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner did not provide a clear opinion regarding the etiology of the tinnitus and hearing loss. The Veteran's lay statements supported his claims.,There are conflicting medical opinions regarding the cause of the hepatitis B. Additional evidence is needed to determine if it was related to service exposure or another factor.,The Veteran has provided credible testimony about in-service exposure, but there are no clear medical opinions linking the hepatitis B to that exposure.
- Claimed conditions
- tinnitus, bilateral hearing loss, hepatitis B
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- November 26, 2019
- Citation
- 19189069
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 1,454 · Granted: 23% (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 19189069.
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.
- 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.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for tinnitus, arthritis, and memory loss. The decision found no evidence linking these conditions to his military service.
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