The claim for service connection for bilateral hearing loss is denied as new and material evidence was not submitted.,The claim for service connection for headaches, right knee disability, and tinnitus has been reopened and granted to the extent of these issues.,The claim for service connection for a respiratory disability (lung damage) is denied due to lack of current diagnosis or functional impairment.,A rating higher than 20 percent for degenerative arthritis of the spine is remanded as no VA examination was conducted in conjunction with this claim.,Service connection for PTSD is remanded as the incident basis for the claim has not been corroborated.,The claims for service connection for a right hand disability and right wrist disability are remanded due to lack of evidence linking these disabilities to service.
The deciding factor: No new and material evidence was submitted to reopen the claim for bilateral hearing loss.,New and material evidence related to an unestablished fact necessary to substantiate the claims for headaches, right knee disability, and tinnitus. The Veteran's assertions were considered credible.,The current diagnosis of a respiratory disability (lung damage) is not shown by the evidence of record.,No VA examination was conducted in conjunction with this claim due to the correctional facility's refusal to allow transportation.,Corroboration of the incident basis for PTSD has not been provided, thus service connection cannot be established.,The claims for right hand and right wrist disabilities are remanded as there is no evidence linking these conditions to service.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral hearing loss, right knee disability, headaches, tinnitus, respiratory disability (lung damage), degenerative arthritis of the spine, PTSD, right hand disability, right wrist disability
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 10, 2023
- Citation
- 23001457
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 622 · Granted: 17% (granted or partly granted, in the vetted decisions on this site)
Judge attribution: 2025 complete; earlier years partial.
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 23001457.
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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.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's appeal is remanded for additional development, including a new VA examination to assess his bilateral knee and hip disabilities.
- Granted
The Board of Veterans' Appeals has granted service connection for PTSD and Mood Disorders, both presumed conditions under the PACT Act.
- Granted
The Board has determined that the Veteran's headaches are at least as likely as not caused by his service-connected traumatic brain injury, and thus grants service connection for this condition.
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