The Veteran's claims for service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus have been granted in full. The remaining issues of service connection for a back disorder and an acquired psychiatric disorder (including posttraumatic stress disorder and depression) are dismissed as moot due to the grant of service connection.,VA denied service connection for a back disorder because there was no evidence of arthritis within one year after separation from service, and VA found that the Veteran's current low back condition is not related to his military service.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus were granted in full due to their full grants of benefits sought on appeal. The remaining issues are dismissed as moot because they have been resolved by the grant of service connection for these conditions.,VA denied service connection for a back disorder because there was no evidence of arthritis within one year after separation from service, and VA found that the Veteran's current low back condition is not related to his military service.
- Claimed conditions
- Bilateral Hearing Loss, Tinnitus, Back Disorder (Low Back), Acquired Psychiatric Disorder (Posttraumatic Stress Disorder and Depression)
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 30, 2019
- Citation
- 19196751
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 19196751.
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A dismissal means the Board did not decide the issue on its merits — usually because it was withdrawn or had become moot.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.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that the Veteran's conditions are related to in-service noise exposure.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claims for a compensable rating for bilateral hearing loss, an initial rating in excess of 50 percent for PTSD, entitlement to TDIU, and SMC based on housebound status.
- Partly granted
The Board granted an effective date of May 17, 2019, for a 70 percent disability rating for PTSD but denied earlier effective dates for service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus.
- 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.
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