The Board denied the veteran's claims for service connection and earlier effective dates, as there was no evidence of a current disability or entitlement arising prior to December 21, 2021.
The deciding factor: The Veteran does not have a current disability of bilateral hearing loss, and the criteria for an earlier effective date were not met due to the lack of timely submission of a completed application within one year of the initial intent to file claim.
- Claimed conditions
- Bilateral hearing loss, Right hand strain with thumb impairment, Right hand strain with index finger impairment, Right hand strain with long finger impairment, Right hand strain with ring finger impairment, Right hand strain with little finger impairment, Right wrist scar post-surgical repair, Right upper extremity ulnar nerve impingement, Tinnitus
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- April 25, 2025
- Citation
- A25038361
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.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus, finding that the Veteran's conditions are related to in-service noise exposure.
- 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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