The Veteran's service connection claims for bilateral hearing loss, bilateral flat feet, and insomnia are granted. The Veteran's right knee disability and left knee disability each receive a rating of 10 percent. A higher rating is denied for the Veteran's insomnia since August 11, 2023, and his lumbar spine disability receives an increased rating to 20 percent.
The deciding factor: The Board found that the Veteran's pre-existing bilateral flat feet were aggravated by service, warranting service connection. The Veteran's insomnia was rated at 30 percent prior to August 11, 2023, and denied for a higher rating since then due to lack of evidence showing occupational and social impairment with reduced reliability and productivity.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral hearing loss, bilateral flat feet, insomnia, right knee disability, left knee disability, lumbar spine disability
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 20%
- Decision date
- October 17, 2024
- Citation
- A24066885
Veterans Law Judge
Decisions by this judge: 3,217 · Granted: 46% (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 A24066885.
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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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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