Citation Nr: 21069117 Decision Date: 11/17/21 Archive Date: 11/17/21 DOCKET NO. 16-28 983 DATE: November 17, 2021 REMANDED Entitlement to service connection for tinnitus is remanded. REASONS FOR REMAND The Veteran served on active duty from September 1999 to July 2013. However, as reflected in a June 2014 Administrative Decision, he is only eligible for VA benefits for the period from September 28, 1999, to September 26, 2005. He is ineligible for VA benefits for the period from September 27, 2005, to July 15, 2013, as such has been determined to be dishonorable for Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) purposes and, therefore, a bar to VA benefits. This matter comes before the Board of Veterans' Appeals (Board) on appeal from a rating decision issued in August 2014 by a VA Regional Office. In May 2020, the Veteran testified at a Board hearing before a Veterans Law Judge. A transcript of the hearing is associated with the record. In July 2020, the Board, as relevant, denied service connection for tinnitus. Thereafter, the Veteran appealed such denial to the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims (Court). In July 2021, the Court granted a Joint Motion for Partial Remand (JMPR), thereby vacating the July 2020 decision to such extent and remanding the matter to the Board for further adjudication. In July 2021, the Board notified the Veteran that the Veterans Law Judge who conducted the May 2020 hearing was no longer employed by the Board and was provided an opportunity to testify at another hearing before a Veterans Law Judge who would decide his claim. However, in August 2021, the Veteran declined another hearing and requested that a decision be made based on the evidence of record. Entitlement to service connection for tinnitus. In the July 2020 decision, the Board denied service connection for tinnitus based on a finding that such did not have its onset during, or result from, the Veteran's period of military service from September 1999 to September 2005. In reaching such determination, the Board relied, in part, on a September 2015 VA examiner's opinion that it was less likely than not that the Veteran's tinnitus is related to his eligible period of service as he reported the onset between 2010 and 2011. However, in the JMPR, the parties found, as relevant, that the Board erred in failing to ensure compliance with VA's duty to assist as the September 2015 VA examiner did not provide a well-reasoned medical explanation for finding that his tinnitus was not related to his military service. Specifically, the parties observed that the examiner based his unfavorable opinion solely on the Veteran's reported onset of date of tinnitus in 2010-2011, and did not consider whether such was related to his exposure to noise during his eligible period of service. Specifically, it was noted that the Veteran's military occupational specialty (MOS) of communications technician had a moderate probability of noise exposure and he reported that he was exposed to loud noise during service. Consequently, the parties found that a remand was warranted in order to obtain an adequate opinion addressing such matter, which also considered the Veteran's October 2018 statement that his tinnitus started during his third deployment from April 2004 to September 2004 while working on the flight deck of an aircraft carrier as well as the possibility of delayed-onset tinnitus. Thus, based on the foregoing, the Board finds that a remand is necessary in order to obtain an addendum opinion addressing the etiology of the Veteran's tinnitus as directed by the JMPR. The matter is REMANDED for the following actions: Forward the record, to include a copy of this remand, to an appropriate VA examiner for an opinion addressing the etiology of the Veteran's tinnitus. The need for an examination of the Veteran is left to the discretion of the clinician selected to write the opinion. Following a review of the record, the examiner should address the below inquiries: (A) Is it at least as likely as not (i.e. a 50 percent or greater probability) that the Veteran's tinnitus had its onset in, or is otherwise related to, his period of military service from September 1999 to September 2005, to include as a result of in-service noise exposure coincident with his MOS of communications technician, which has a moderate probability of noise exposure. (B) Is it least as likely as not (i.e., a 50 percent or greater probability) that the Veteran's tinnitus manifested within one year of his separation from eligibility of service in September 2005, i.e., by September 2006? If so, please describe the manifestations. In offering such opinions, the examiner should consider and discuss (1) the Veteran's reported exposure to loud noise during service coincident with his MOS and related duties, (2) his various reports of the onset of tinnitus, to include (a) in 2010 to 2011 at the September 2015 VA examination, (b) during his third deployment from April 2004 to September 2004 while working on the flight deck of an aircraft carrier, and (c) intermittently during his period of service from September 1999 to September 2005, which became constant in 2010, at the May 2020 Board hearing, and (3) the possibility of delayed onset tinnitus. A rationale for any opinion offered should be provided. A. JAEGER Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans' Appeals Attorney for the Board Spielmann, Jill F. 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.