The claim of service connection for hearing loss is denied.,The claims of effective date earlier than June 17, 2017, for service connection for tinnitus and degenerative arthritis of the spine with intervertebral disc syndrome are both denied.,The claim of a rating higher than 70 percent for major depressive disorder with anxious distress and panic attacks is denied.,The claim of an earlier effective date for the grant of 70 percent rating for major depressive disorder with anxious distress and panic attacks is also denied.

The deciding factor: There is no evidence showing that the Veteran has hearing loss that meets VA disability criteria, thus service connection cannot be granted.,The claims were not received prior to June 17, 2017, and there are no unadjudicated formal or informal claims for tinnitus or degenerative arthritis of the spine with intervertebral disc syndrome before this date.,The Veteran's major depressive disorder does not cause total social and occupational impairment as required for a higher rating.,There is no evidence showing that the Veteran's major depressive disorder had an increase in severity within one year prior to June 17, 2017.

Claimed conditions

hearing loss, tinnitus, degenerative arthritis of the spine with intervertebral disc syndrome, major depressive disorder with anxious distress and panic attacks

How they argued it

Direct service connection

Exposure basis

None

Rating assigned

None in this decision

Decision date

July 11, 2023

Citation

23038379

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 23038379.