Citation Nr: 1319817	
Decision Date: 06/19/13    Archive Date: 06/27/13

DOCKET NO.  09-39 245	)	DATE
	)
	)

On appeal from the
Department of Veterans Affairs Regional Office in St. Petersburg, Florida


THE ISSUE

1.  Entitlement to service connection for bilateral hearing loss.

2.  Entitlement to service connection for tinnitus.  


REPRESENTATION

Appellant represented by:	Disabled American Veterans


ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD

N. Snyder, Counsel





INTRODUCTION

This appeal has been advanced on the Board's docket pursuant to 38 C.F.R. § 20.900(c) (2012).  38 U.S.C.A. § 7107(a)(2) (West 2002).

The Veteran served on active duty from January 1953 to December 1956.

This matter comes before the Board of Veterans' Appeals (Board) from a December 2007 rating decision of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO) in St. Petersburg, Florida.

The appeal is REMANDED to the RO via the Appeals Management Center (AMC), in Washington, DC.  VA will notify the appellant if further action is required.


REMAND

On his substantive appeal, the Veteran requested a hearing before the Board.  The Veteran was scheduled for hearings in December 2011 and March 2012.  On both occasions, the Veteran requested that the hearing be postponed as he was not able to attend as a result of health problems.  In a September 2012 statement, the Veteran withdrew his hearing request.  In March 2013, the Board issued a decision remanding the claims of entitlement to service connection for bilateral hearing loss and tinnitus for further development.  In May 2013, the Board sent the Veteran a letter asking for clarification as to whether he wanted to attend a hearing before the Board.  In response, the Veteran indicated a desire to appear at a hearing before the Board at his local regional office , i.e. a Travel Board hearing.  This hearing must be scheduled at the RO level.  See Bernard v. Brown, 4 Vet. App. 384, 393 (1993); 
38 C.F.R. §§ 3.103(a) and (c)(1), 19.9, 19.25, 20.700, 20.704.

Accordingly, the case is REMANDED for the following action:

(This appeal has been advanced on the Board's docket pursuant to 38 C.F.R. § 20.900(c) (2012).  Expedited handling is requested.)

Make the necessary arrangements to schedule the appellant for a Travel Board hearing at the RO and notify him of the scheduled hearing at the latest address of record.  A copy of the notice provided to the appellant of the scheduled hearing should be placed in the record.

The appellant has the right to submit additional evidence and argument on the matters the Board has remanded.  Kutscherousky v. West, 12 Vet. App. 369 (1999).

This claim must be afforded expeditious treatment.  The law requires that all claims that are remanded by the Board of Veterans' Appeals or by the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims for additional development or other appropriate action must be handled in an expeditious manner.  See 38 U.S.C.A. §§ 5109B, 7112 (West Supp. 2012).



_________________________________________________
L M. BARNARD
Acting Veterans Law Judge, Board of Veterans' Appeals

Under 38 U.S.C.A. § 7252 (West 2002), only a decision of the Board of Veterans' Appeals is appealable to the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims.  This remand is in the nature of a preliminary order and does not constitute a decision of the Board on the merits of your appeal.  38 C.F.R. § 20.1100(b) (2012).