The Board denied service connection for a left ear hearing loss disability as there is no evidence of a current disability, in-service injury or disease, and no nexus between the claimed condition and active service.
The deciding factor: The February 2020 VA examiner's opinion, along with addendum opinions, concluded that the Veteran's left ear hearing loss was not related to her military service due to lack of evidence showing a connection between in-service noise exposure and current hearing loss, as well as normal hearing upon separation from service.
- Claimed conditions
- left ear hearing loss disability
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 7, 2021
- Citation
- 21062394
What this means for you
A denial is a starting point, not the end of the road. You can see why this claim fell short — and, if you are still inside the one-year window, the appeal lanes that may remain open to you.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for a left ear hearing loss disability, resolving reasonable doubt in the Veteran's favor and finding that it is at least as likely as not related to in-service noise exposure.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for left ear hearing loss disability, finding that there was no evidence of a nexus between the current condition and his in-service noise exposure.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claims for service connection for a skin condition, left ear hearing loss disability, and tinnitus due to an error by the AOJ in failing to notify the Veteran of his right to a pre-decisional hearing.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for a left ear hearing loss disability, resolving any reasonable doubt in the Veteran's favor.
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