The Veteran's claims for service connection and increased ratings are being remanded due to the failure of the Veteran to report for scheduled VA examinations. The Board will provide another opportunity for the Veteran to attend these exams.
The deciding factor: The Veteran failed to report for scheduled VA examinations, which were necessary to determine whether his hearing loss is related to service and the current severity of his service-connected disabilities.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral hearing loss, right hip limitation of extension, right hip limitation of flexion, right hip limitation of abduction, adduction and rotation, left knee arthritis, right knee arthritis, lumbar spine disability, erectile dysfunction, prostatectomy status post adenocarcinoma of the prostate with residual voiding dysfunction (prostate disability)
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 28, 2020
- Citation
- 20029848
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 20029848.
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.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeal for service connection of bilateral hearing loss and a ruptured right ear drum was dismissed due to the death of the Veteran.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for diabetes mellitus type II with erectile dysfunction was denied as the evidence did not show that he had been diagnosed and manifested to at least a 10 percent disability rating on or prior to May 8, 2001.
- Denied
The Board found that the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss was noted upon entry into active duty service and did not increase in severity during service. Therefore, it denied his claim for service connection.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for bilateral hearing loss, migraine headaches, and PTSD due to additional development of records and examination.
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