The Veteran's claims for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, bilateral hearing loss, and tinnitus have been reopened due to the submission of new evidence. The claim for a heart condition as due to exposure to herbicides has not been reopened.,Service connection is granted for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus.
The deciding factor: The new evidence submitted since the February 2013 final rating decision includes statements from the Veteran, VA memorandum regarding the Veteran’s stressors and his potential exposure to herbicides, VA medical center (VAMC) records, private medical records, and copies of the Veteran's service treatment records (STRs) and military personnel records. This evidence is sufficient to reopen the Veteran’s claims for service connection for an acquired psychiatric disorder, bilateral hearing loss, and tinnitus.,The new evidence submitted since the February 2013 final rating decision includes a private audiological report which stated that his bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus were more likely than not related to his active duty military service. This evidence is sufficient to reopen the Veteran’s claims for service connection bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus.
- Claimed conditions
- Acquired Psychiatric Disorder, Bilateral Hearing Loss, Tinnitus
- How they argued it
- Reopened with new and material evidence
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 8, 2020
- Citation
- 20001515
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,341 · Granted: 33% (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 20001515.
What this means for you
A partial grant means some issues were granted while others were denied or remanded — common in multi-issue claims. Look at which issues went which way, and how each was argued.
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 claims for service connection for PTSD and any acquired psychiatric disorder, finding that there was no evidence to support a link between his current mental health conditions and his military service.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that the Veteran's current conditions are not related to his military service.
- Granted
The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss is granted as service-connected. The claims for alcohol abuse and psychiatric disorder are remanded for additional development, including a VA examination to determine the nature and etiology of these conditions.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the case due to a need for a new VA examination to assess the current severity of the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss. The issue remains under direct service connection theory.
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