The claim of service connection for bilateral sensorineural hearing loss is reopened and remanded to determine if the condition preexisted service or is otherwise related to active service.
The deciding factor: The decision was remanded due to new evidence received since the last denial, which suggests a possible link between the Veteran's current hearing loss and his military service. The examiner will need to assess whether the hearing loss clearly and unmistakably did not worsen beyond its natural progression during service or is otherwise related to active service.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral sensorineural hearing loss
- How they argued it
- Reopened with new and material evidence
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 19, 2020
- Citation
- 20020446
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 20020446.
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 Veteran's initial claim for service-connected bilateral sensorineural hearing loss was denied, and the rating assigned prior to September 12, 2024, is noncompensable.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for bilateral sensorineural hearing loss, tinnitus, thoracolumbar levoscoliosis with advanced multilevel DDD and facet arthropathy (low back disability), and cervical spine disability to include cervicalgia (neck disability) due to a lack of VA examination records and an incomplete review of service treatment records.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's service connection claims for hypertension, bilateral sensorineural hearing loss, GERD, Barrett's esophagus, and arrhythmia are remanded due to pre-decisional errors in obtaining necessary medical opinions.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's claim for service connection for hearing loss is being remanded due to pre-decisional duty-to-assist errors related to his Reserve component service.
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