Citation Nr: 20007015
Decision Date: 01/28/20	Archive Date: 01/28/20

DOCKET NO. 16-11 148A
DATE: January 28, 2020

REMANDED

A compensable rating for a bilateral hearing loss disability is remanded.

REASONS FOR REMAND

The Veteran served on active duty from May 1953 to April 1955.

This matter comes before the Board of Veterans’ Appeals (Board) on appeal from a September 2013 rating decision from the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO).

The Board notes that the Veteran requested a Travel Board Hearing before a Veterans Law Judge. The Board scheduled a hearing to be held in August 2019. However, the Board’s internal appeals tracking system shows the Veteran cancelled the hearing and the record contains no evidence of good cause. Further, the Veteran did not request a postponement or motion for a new hearing. Accordingly, the Veteran’s request for a hearing is considered withdrawn. 38 C.F.R. § 20.704.

The Veteran’s most recent VA examination for this issue occurred in June 2016. Since this examination, through his representative, the Veteran has argued that his disability is worse than reflected in the June 2016 and that the VA examination is too old to reflect the severity of the service-connected bilateral hearing loss disability.  Because it has been nearly four years since his last VA examination, a new examination is required to assess the current severity of his service-connected bilateral hearing loss disability. See Green v. Derwinski, 1 Vet. App. 121 (1991); see also Snuffer v. Gober, 10 Vet. App. 400, 403 (1997).

The matters are REMANDED for the following action:

1. The AOJ should arrange for a VA audiological evaluation (with audiometric studies) to determine the current severity of the Veteran’s bilateral hearing loss disability. In addition to reporting audiometry results, the examiner should elicit from the Veteran information as to the effect his hearing loss has on his daily living, and comment on the expected impact the degree of hearing loss found would have on occupational and social functioning (i.e., provide an opinion as to whether the Veteran’s reports of functional impairment are consistent with his level of hearing loss shown).

2. If upon completion of the above action the issues remain denied, the case should be returned to the Board after compliance with appellate procedures.

 

 

E. I. VELEZ

Veterans Law Judge

Board of Veterans’ Appeals

Attorney for the Board	I. Kerner, Associate Counsel

The Board’s decision in this case is binding only with respect to the instant matter decided. This decision is not precedential, and does not establish VA policies or interpretations of general applicability. 38 C.F.R. § 20.1303.