The Veteran's claim for a compensable rating for left ear hearing loss has been denied as his audiometric results do not meet the criteria for a compensable disability rating under VA standards.,The Veteran's claim for service connection for right ear hearing loss has been denied because his level of hearing loss does not meet VA standards. The Veteran's tinnitus claim is remanded due to an inadequate examination.
The deciding factor: The audiometric results do not correspond to a compensable disability rating under either Table VI or Table VIA.,Both examinations show that the auditory thresholds for frequencies of 500-4000 Hz are all below 30 decibels and the auditory threshold for only 2 frequencies is above 26 decibels in the case of the March 2018 VA examination. Also, the speech recognition scores using the Maryland CNC Test are more than 94 percent.
- Claimed conditions
- Left ear hearing loss, Right ear hearing loss
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- August 24, 2020
- Citation
- 20055723
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 20055723.
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 has remanded the claims for further development due to insufficient evidence and need for additional examinations.
- Dismissed
The appeal for service connection for a right ear hearing loss disability is dismissed. The appeal for service connection for bilateral knee disabilities is denied.
- Denied
The Board has determined that the Veteran's left ear hearing loss disability does not meet or approximate criteria for a compensable (10%) disability rating at any point during the appeal period.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for a compensable rating for right ear hearing loss and service connection for left ear hearing loss due to inadequate audiometric examinations. The Veteran will be scheduled for new VA examinations to determine the nature and etiology of his left ear hearing loss and the severity of his hearing loss.
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