The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss does not meet the criteria for a disability under VA standards, and thus he is not entitled to service connection.,The Veteran has refractive errors of the eye (myopia) that are not considered diseases or injuries for VA purposes. Therefore, his claim for an eye condition is denied.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's hearing loss does not meet the threshold criteria set forth in 38 C.F.R. § 3.385 to be considered a disability for VA purposes.,Refractive errors such as myopia are excluded from the definition of diseases or injuries for which service connection may be granted, and thus do not qualify for service connection.
- Claimed conditions
- Bilateral Hearing Loss, Eye Condition (Refractive Errors), Sinusitis
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- August 25, 2020
- Citation
- 20056293
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 20056293.
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.
- 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.
- 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.
- Denied
The Veteran's hearing loss was rated at 30 percent, the highest non-compensable rating available. The Board found that his hearing loss did not warrant a higher rating based on VA examinations and medical records.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for bilateral hearing loss, finding that there was no evidence of a nexus between his current hearing loss and his active service. The Board noted that while he had complaints of earaches in service, these did not indicate a current disability.
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