Citation Nr: 21072800 Decision Date: 12/06/21 Archive Date: 12/06/21 DOCKET NO. 19-17 626 DATE: December 6, 2021 REMANDED Entitlement to service connection for bilateral hearing loss is remanded. REASONS FOR REMAND The Veteran served on active duty from January 1968 to January 1970 with service in the Republic of Vietnam. This matter comes before the Board of Veterans' Appeals (Board) on appeal from a January 2019 rating decision issued by a Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO). The Veteran testified before the undersigned at a hearing in May 2021. A transcript is of record. This appeal is advanced on the Board's docket pursuant to 38 C.F.R. § 20.902(c) (2019); 38 U.S.C. § 7107 (a)(2) (2012). The Veteran contends his bilateral hearing loss is a result of his duties as a member of an 81 mm mortar platoon in a combat infantry unit. VA previously conceded in-service acoustic trauma. VA provided the Veteran an examination in December 2018 to determine the nature and etiology of his bilateral hearing loss. Although the December 2018 examiner conceded in service acoustic trauma and noted that the relationship between noise, auditory damage, and hearing loss is well documented; the examiner provided a negative nexus opinion, in part, because the Veteran had normal hearing upon separation from active duty. The examiner relied on the conceded in-service acoustic trauma when she provided a positive nexus opinion for the Veteran's tinnitus. The examination is inadequate to adjudicate the Veteran's claim because it does not contain a complete rationale to support the negative nexus opinion. Normal hearing at separation is not fatal to a claim of service connection for hearing loss. See Ledford v. Derwinski, 3 Vet. App. 87, 89 (1992). Evidence of a current hearing loss disability and a medically sound basis for attributing such disability to service may serve as a basis for a grant of service connection for hearing loss. Hensley v. Brown, 5 Vet. App. 155, 157 (1993). If the normal hearing at separation precludes establishing service connection for hearing loss, it must be explained why this is so, particularly in light of the grant of service connection for tinnitus based on conceded in-service acoustic trauma. The matter is REMANDED for the following action: 1. Forward the claims file to an appropriate clinician to determine whether the bilateral hearing loss is related to the Veteran's military service. If the examiner determines that an additional in-person examination is required, one should be scheduled. Following review of the claims file and, if indicated, examination of the Veteran, the examiner should opine whether it is at least as likely as not (50 percent or greater probability) that the bilateral hearing loss began in or is otherwise caused by the Veteran's conceded in-service noise exposure. If the examiner concludes that the Veteran's current hearing loss is less likely than not related to military service because the Veteran had normal hearing at separation, the examiner must explain why normal hearing at separation would preclude relating the current hearing loss to military service. The examiner is advised that the Veteran is competent to report his symptoms and history, and such reports must be specifically acknowledged and considered in formulating any opinion. If the examiner rejects the Veteran's reports, he or she must provide a reason for doing so. The examiner's report must include a complete rationale for the opinion provided. M. HYLAND Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans' Appeals Attorney for the Board Zachery S.C. Luce, 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.