The Veteran's claims for increased ratings and earlier effective dates for bilateral hearing loss are remanded. The Veteran is also requested to provide evidence of toxic exposure risk activities in service, as the PACT Act requires a medical opinion on the likelihood of a nexus between his conditions and such exposures.
The deciding factor: The Board finds that additional development is needed due to the Veteran's testimony regarding increased bilateral hearing loss severity since his last VA examination. The Veteran also submitted a timely NOD concerning an earlier effective date for his hearing loss rating, which requires issuance of a SOC. Additionally, toxic exposure risk activities need to be considered in connection with service connection claims.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral hearing loss, high blood pressure, bilateral upper and lower extremity peripheral neuropathy, speech loss, ischemic heart disease, diabetes mellitus, type II, urinary frequency, bilateral lower extremity vascular disease
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- September 23, 2023
- Citation
- 23053045
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 23053045.
What this means for you
A remand is not a loss. The Board sent the case back for more development — often a new exam or missing records — before making a final decision. Many remands later end in a grant, and the decision spells out exactly what the Board wanted to see.
What you can do next
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.
- Denied
The Board found that the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss was noted upon entry into active duty service and did not increase in severity during service. Therefore, it denied his claim for service connection.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for a heart condition, including ischemic heart disease. The evidence did not support a finding of a current disability related to service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for bilateral hearing loss, migraine headaches, and PTSD due to additional development of records and examination.
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