The Veteran's service-connected disabilities include a lumbar spine disorder, bilateral hearing loss, PTSD with depression, right foot fractures, and recurrent blepharitis. The Board has found that the criteria for SMC at the housebound rate are met.,The Veteran does not meet the eligibility criteria for a special home adaptation grant due to his service-connected disabilities.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's service-connected lumbar spine disorder, bilateral hearing loss, PTSD with depression, right foot fractures, and recurrent blepharitis result in functional impairment that requires regular aid and attendance. The Board has found the criteria for SMC at the housebound rate are met.,The Veteran does not have a permanent and total disability involving both hands or blindness in both eyes, which would qualify him for a special home adaptation grant.
- Claimed conditions
- Degenerative changes, lumbar spine with radiculopathy and limitation of motion, Bilateral hearing loss, Posttraumatic stress disorder with depression, Fracture of right 2nd, 3rd, 4th metatarsals with malunion of 2nd and 3rd metatarsals with metatarsalgia, Recurrent bilateral blepharitis
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 9, 2020
- Citation
- 20001765
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 service connection for bilateral hearing loss, as there was no evidence of a current disability in the right ear and insufficient evidence to establish a nexus between the left ear hearing loss and service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the matter for a medical clarification regarding whether the Veteran's service-connected epilepsy has aggravated his bilateral hearing loss.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for service connection for bilateral hearing loss to obtain an addendum opinion addressing the Veteran's lay statements regarding in-service acoustic trauma and a rocket blast injury.
- 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.
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