The Veteran's application to reopen his right ear hearing loss disability claim was granted. His bilateral inguinal hernias and lumbosacral spine DDD claims were denied, as well as an increased rating for the latter condition prior to August 9, 2022. The earlier effective date of February 19, 2016 for his right lower extremity lumbar radiculopathy claim was granted.
The deciding factor: The VA audiologist found no evidence of permanent auditory damage on active duty from conceded noise exposure and the Veteran's current right ear hearing loss is not related to military noise exposure.
- Claimed conditions
- Right ear hearing loss disability, Bilateral inguinal hernias
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 10%
- Decision date
- September 9, 2023
- Citation
- 23049957
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 23049957.
What this means for you
A partial grant means some issues were granted while others were denied or remanded — common in multi-issue claims. Look at which issues went which way, and how each was argued.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Granted
The Board has granted service connection for a right ear hearing loss disability but denied service connection for a left ear hearing loss disability.
- Granted
The Board has determined that the Veteran's right ear hearing loss disability began during service and is therefore granted as service connection.
- Granted
The Veteran's left ear hearing loss disability is related to hazardous noise exposure in service, while his right ear hearing loss disability was not aggravated during service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided that there is not enough evidence to determine if the Veteran's right ear hearing loss disability was caused by his military service, and thus the case must be sent back for further examination.
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