The Board has remanded the case for additional development, including obtaining an advisory opinion from an independent medical expert to assess the Veteran's ability to secure and follow substantially gainful employment due to his service-connected disabilities.
The deciding factor: The decision is based on the need for a comprehensive assessment of the Veteran's functional impairment due to his service-connected disabilities in order to determine if he meets the criteria for TDIU.
- Claimed conditions
- Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI), Major Depression, Tinnitus, Right Forehead and Scalp Scar, Migraines including migraine variants, Painful Right Forehead and Scalp Scar, Bilateral Hearing Loss, Hyposmia
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- December 16, 2020
- Citation
- 20079357
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. Read the original VA decision (opens in a new tab) using citation 20079357.
What this means for you
A remand sends an issue back for more development, often a new examination or missing records. It does not award the benefit or decide the final outcome. The original decision explains the additional work ordered.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Board denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that the Veteran's current conditions are not related to his military service.
- 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.
- Dismissed
The Board has dismissed the Veteran's claims for service connection for PTSD, Major Depression, and Panic Disorder due to his withdrawal of these issues prior to a decision being made.
- 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.
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