The Veteran's sleep apnea is denied as there is no evidence of in-service onset or a link to service.,The Veteran's left ankle condition is denied due to lack of in-service onset and insufficient evidence linking the current diagnosis to service.,The Veteran's right ankle condition is denied for similar reasons.,PTSD is granted with an effective date of May 23, 2021.,Right hip conditions are granted with effective dates of August 6, 2020.,A 30 percent rating for bilateral hearing loss has an effective date of July 26, 2022.,Hypertension is granted with an effective date of May 23, 2021.

The deciding factor: The evidence does not establish that the Veteran's sleep apnea began during service or is related to a service-connected disability. The earliest medical record showing sleep apnea was from March 2014, which predates his military service by many years.,There is no in-service diagnosis of left ankle condition and insufficient evidence linking current symptoms to service. The earliest medical records do not indicate the presence of such an injury or disease.,Similar reasoning applies to the right ankle condition as there are no in-service diagnoses and insufficient evidence linking current symptoms to service.,PTSD was granted based on a current diagnosis, but the Board found that the Veteran's representative did not provide sufficient evidence to support the claim for secondary service connection through obesity.,Right hip conditions were granted with effective dates of August 6, 2020, as these diagnoses predate the earliest date of receipt of an intent to file a claim for PTSD.,The 30 percent rating for bilateral hearing loss was granted based on evidence showing that it became more severe after July 26, 2022.,Hypertension was granted with an effective date of May 23, 2021, as this is the earliest date of receipt of a claim.

Claimed conditions

sleep apnea, left ankle condition, right ankle condition, PTSD, right hip trochanteric pain syndrome with osteoarthritis, right hip extension trochanteric pain syndrome with osteoarthritis, right hip flexion trochanteric pain syndrome with osteoarthritis

How they argued it

Direct service connection

Exposure basis

None

Rating assigned

70%

Decision date

January 6, 2026

Citation

A26000867

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 A26000867.