The Board has remanded the claims of service connection for bilateral hearing loss, back disability, OSA, and erectile dysfunction due to lack of evidence supporting these conditions. The Veteran's current disabilities are not related to his military service.
The deciding factor: The VA examinations did not provide sufficient evidence linking the Veteran’s current disabilities to his military service.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral hearing loss, back disability, obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), erectile dysfunction
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 30, 2020
- Citation
- 20007535
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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the issue of entitlement to service connection for a back disability due to a duty to assist error, specifically regarding VA's failure to provide the Veteran with a VA examination prior to the rating decision.
- Partly granted
The Veteran was granted a 70 percent initial disability rating for PTSD effective December 2, 2021, but the claim for an increased rating in excess of 70 percent was denied. The appeal also included claims for service connection and ratings for various conditions, some of which were granted while others were remanded.
- Dismissed
The Veteran withdrew the appeals for service connection for bilateral pes planus, obstructive sleep apnea, bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) based on the Veteran's exposure to in-service chemical agents.
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