The appeal to reopen a claim for service connection for PTSD is granted. Entitlement to service connection for bilateral tinnitus and hypertension is granted, while entitlement to service connection for bilateral hearing loss and an acquired psychiatric disorder (claimed as schizophrenia or depression) is remanded.
The deciding factor: New evidence was submitted that relates to an unestablished fact necessary to substantiate the claim for PTSD. The Veteran's current diagnoses of tinnitus and hypertension are etiologically linked to his service, while there is no established link between his acquired psychiatric disorder (claimed as schizophrenia or depression) and his service.
- Claimed conditions
- Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Acquired Psychiatric Disorder, Bilateral Tinnitus, Hypertension, Bilateral Hearing Loss
- How they argued it
- Reopened with new and material evidence
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 23, 2020
- Citation
- 20004901
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,092 · Granted: 42% (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 20004901.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.
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.
- 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.
- Denied
The Board denied the claim of service connection for hypertension, finding that it did not manifest during service and is not causally related to the Veteran's exposure to herbicides or service.
- 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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