The Board has granted service connection for a right ear hearing loss disability but has remanded the issue of left ear hearing loss disability due to insufficient evidence. The Veteran's right ear hearing loss is found to be related to his in-service noise exposure.
The deciding factor: The VA examiner did not address the Veteran’s lay statements regarding in-service noise exposure and therefore, the opinion provided by the VA examiner is inadequate.
- Claimed conditions
- Right ear hearing loss disability, Left ear hearing loss disability
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 19, 2019
- Citation
- 19195365
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 19195365.
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.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for a compensable rating for right ear hearing loss disability due to unreliable and inconsistent responses during audiometric testing.
- Partly granted
The Board denied the claims for an initial compensable rating for left ear sensorineural hearing loss, service connection for a right ear hearing loss disability, and a left eye disorder. However, it granted service connection for a back disability and radiculopathy of both lower extremities as secondary to the back disability.
- Partly granted
The Board granted service connection for left ear hearing loss disability and denied an earlier effective date for urinary incontinence, while remanding claims for bowel incontinence and right ear hearing loss.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for right ear hearing loss and tinnitus, but denied service connection for left ear hearing loss. The Veteran's right ear hearing loss is related to in-service noise exposure, while his tinnitus is not. His left ear hearing loss does not meet the criteria for a disability for VA purposes.
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