Citation Nr: 21020888 Decision Date: 04/08/21 Archive Date: 04/08/21 DOCKET NO. 18-19 253 DATE: April 8, 2021 REMANDED Entitlement to a compensable disability rating for hearing loss is remanded. REASONS FOR REMAND The Veteran served on active duty in the United States Army from January 1969 to August 1970 with service in the Republic of Vietnam. This matter comes before the Board of Veterans’ Appeals (Board) on appeal from a March 2013 rating decision from the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO). The Veteran presented sworn testimony at a hearing before the undersigned Veterans Law Judge in January 2021. The Board notes that a claim for a total disability rating based on individual unemployability (TDIU) is part of an increased rating claim when such claim is raised by the record. Rice v. Shinseki, 22 Vet. App. 447 (2009). However, here the evidence reveals that the Veteran has not reported that his service-connected disability on appeal precludes substantially gainful employment. See Hearing Testimony, January 2021. Therefore, the issue of entitlement to a TDIU is not before the Board. 1. Entitlement to a compensable disability rating for hearing loss is remanded. During the January 2021 hearing, the Veteran testified that his hearing loss is worse than contemplated by the noncompensable rating. He stated that not being able to hear can be frustrating and annoying. The Veteran also testified that his hearing loss causes insomnia. The Board notes that a March 2021 VA examination was conducted for the Veteran’s claim of insomnia due to hearing loss. The examiner noted that the Veteran was not treated for insomnia during service, but the Veteran began volunteering for guard duty at night “because he was up anyway” due to trouble sleeping stemming from his tinnitus. The examiner found that the Veteran has chronic sleep impairment and opined that it is more likely than not that the Veteran’s insomnia is secondary to his tinnitus. In a March 2021 rating decision, service connection for unspecified insomnia secondary to tinnitus was granted with an evaluation of 0 percent, effective January 27, 2021. Given the Veteran’s testimony, the Board finds that a remand is necessary to obtain a new examination for the Veteran’s hearing loss. See Snuffer v. Gober, 10 Vet. App. 400, 403 (1997). The matters are REMANDED for the following action: (Continued on the next page)   1. Schedule the Veteran for a VA examination (or telehealth interview, review of the record, etc. if an in-person examination is not feasible) with an audiologist to determine the current nature and severity of his service-connected bilateral hearing loss. All necessary tests should be performed. The examiner must review the entire record and consider all pertinent medical and lay evidence. All pertinent symptomatology and findings must be reported in detail. STEVEN D. REISS Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans’ Appeals Attorney for the Board Sara Leigh, Attorney Advisor 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.