The Veteran's claim for service connection for right ankle sprain, bilateral plantar fasciitis, and left ear hearing loss has been reopened due to the submission of new and material evidence. The claim for breast cancer is granted as presumptively related to exposure to burn pits under the PACT Act.,Service connection for breast cancer is granted based on the presumption provided by the PACT Act.
The deciding factor: New and material evidence has been submitted, raising a reasonable possibility of substantiating the claims for right ankle sprain, bilateral plantar fasciitis, and left ear hearing loss. The Veteran's breast cancer claim is granted based on the presumption provided by the PACT Act.
- Claimed conditions
- Right ankle sprain, Bilateral plantar fasciitis, Left ear hearing loss, Breast cancer
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- Burn pits / airborne hazards
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- January 5, 2024
- Citation
- 24000801
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 2,036 · Granted: 27% (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 24000801.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Board has determined that the Veteran's left ear hearing loss disability does not meet or approximate criteria for a compensable (10%) disability rating at any point during the appeal period.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for a compensable rating for right ear hearing loss and service connection for left ear hearing loss due to inadequate audiometric examinations. The Veteran will be scheduled for new VA examinations to determine the nature and etiology of his left ear hearing loss and the severity of his hearing loss.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the claim of service connection for gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) secondary to bilateral plantar fasciitis and left shoulder tendinitis due to inadequate medical opinion regarding causation.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Veteran's liver disability has not resulted in any compensable symptoms, as he had a previous history of liver disease but is currently asymptomatic.,The Veteran's left ear hearing loss has been rated at noncompensable level due to the absence of more than Level I hearing acuity.
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