The Board denied a compensable rating for bilateral hearing loss and remanded the claims for service connection for back pain, kidney disability, and left shoulder and arm nerve disability due to pre-decisional duty-to-assist errors.
The deciding factor: The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss did not meet the criteria for a compensable rating. The claims for service connection were remanded due to inadequate VA examinations and opinions.
- Claimed conditions
- Bilateral hearing loss, Back disability (claimed as chronic lumbar pain), Kidney disability (claimed as kidney failure and renal problems), Left shoulder and arm nerve disability (claimed as neuropathy left shoulder condition and left arm condition)
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 0%
- Decision date
- May 15, 2025
- Citation
- A25043707
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 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.
- Partly granted
The Board granted an effective date of May 17, 2019, for a 70 percent disability rating for PTSD but denied earlier effective dates for service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus.
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