The Board denied the claims for increased ratings and service connection, as the Veteran did not file a timely substantive appeal or request an extension of time within one year of the December 2015 rating decision.
The deciding factor: The claim for a rating in excess of 10 percent for hearing loss was denied due to untimeliness of the substantive appeal. The other claims were denied based on the evidence not supporting service connection or increased ratings.
- Claimed conditions
- Bilateral hearing loss, Lumbar spine spondylosis and degenerative arthritis, Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), Migraine headache, Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD)
- How they argued it
- Secondary to another service-connected condition
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 30, 2024
- Citation
- A24069956
What this means for you
A denial is a starting point, not the end of the road. You can see why this claim fell short — and, if you are still inside the one-year window, the appeal lanes that may remain open to you.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Denied
The Board denied the veteran's claim for service connection for bilateral hearing loss, as there was no evidence of a current disability in the right ear and insufficient evidence to establish a nexus between the left ear hearing loss and service.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the matters for additional development, including obtaining private treatment records and conducting VA examinations.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the matter for a medical clarification regarding whether the Veteran's service-connected epilepsy has aggravated his bilateral hearing loss.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board remands the claim for service connection for bilateral hearing loss to obtain an addendum opinion addressing the Veteran's lay statements regarding in-service acoustic trauma and a rocket blast injury.
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