The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss is granted as service-connected. The claims for the remaining conditions are denied due to lack of new and relevant evidence.
The deciding factor: Service connection was granted for bilateral hearing loss based on continuity of symptomatology since service, but the other claims were denied because no new and relevant evidence had been submitted to support them.
- Claimed conditions
- Bilateral Hearing Loss, Chronic Right Shoulder Condition, Right Small Finger Condition, Left Shoulder Strain with Degenerative Arthritis, Cervical Spine Condition (Mild to Moderate Multilevel Degenerative Disc Disease), Right Foot Condition (Surgical Procedure with Impairment to Walk), Right Knee Condition (Status Post Arthroscopy), Ripped Lower Colon Including Fistula, Two Broken Teeth Resulting in Root Canal
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- March 18, 2026
- Citation
- A26024488
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 A26024488.
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.
- Granted
The Veteran's bilateral hearing loss is granted as service-connected. The claims for alcohol abuse and psychiatric disorder are remanded for additional development, including a VA examination to determine the nature and etiology of these conditions.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has decided to remand the case due to a need for a new VA examination to assess the current severity of the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss. The issue remains under direct service connection theory.
- Denied
The Veteran's hearing loss was rated at 30 percent, the highest non-compensable rating available. The Board found that his hearing loss did not warrant a higher rating based on VA examinations and medical records.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claim for service connection for bilateral hearing loss, finding that there was no evidence of a nexus between his current hearing loss and his active service. The Board noted that while he had complaints of earaches in service, these did not indicate a current disability.
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