Citation Nr: 21022979 Decision Date: 04/19/21 Archive Date: 04/19/21 DOCKET NO. 20-24 307 DATE: April 19, 2021 ORDER Service connection for tinnitus is granted. REMANDED The claim of entitlement to an initial compensable evaluation for interstitial lung disease is remanded. FINDING OF FACT The Veteran’s tinnitus began in service and has continued to the present. CONCLUSION OF LAW The criteria to establish service connection for tinnitus are met. 38 U.S.C. §§ 1110, 5107, 7104 (2012); 38 C.F.R. § 3.303. REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDING AND CONCLUSION The Veteran had active service from December 1959 to September 1960. This matter comes before the Board of Veterans’ Appeals (Board) from an August 2018 rating decision by the Agency of Original Jurisdiction (AOJ). A Board hearing was held in March 2021. A transcript is of record. During his United States Navy service, the Veteran served as a marine fireman. He asserts that his tinnitus is related to noise exposure during service. He has testified that he first experienced ringing in his ears during service, following basic training, and that it continued to the present. See Hearing Tr. at 7. Entitlement to VA compensation may be granted for disability resulting from disease or injury incurred in or aggravated by active duty. 38 U.S.C. §§ 1110 (wartime service), 1131 (peacetime service); 38 C.F.R. § 3.303. To establish a right to compensation for a present disability, a Veteran must show: “(1) the existence of a present disability; (2) in-service incurrence or aggravation of a disease or injury; and (3) a causal relationship between the present disability and the disease or injury incurred or aggravated during service”-the so-called “nexus” requirement. Shedden v. Principi, 381 F.3d 1163, 1167 (Fed. Cir. 2004). Having carefully reviewed the record, the Board has determined that service connection for tinnitus is warranted. In this regard, the Board observes that the Veteran has competently testified that he experienced ringing in his ears during service, following basic training, and that he has experienced that symptom since service, to the present. Because tinnitus is a condition capable of lay observation, and because the Veteran’s reports are credible, service connection for tinnitus is warranted. See Charles v. Principi, 16 Vet. App. 370 (2002). REASONS FOR REMAND The Veteran seeks an initial compensable evaluation for his interstitial lung disease. During his March 2021 hearing, he described the symptoms of his lung disease and indicated that they had become worse. See Hearing Tr. at 2. The Board notes that a VA respiratory examination was most recently conducted in October 2018. Considering the Veteran’s report of worsening of his respiratory disability, the Board concludes that a current examination is warranted. The matter is REMANDED for the following action: 1. Schedule the Veteran for an examination to determine the severity of his service-connected respiratory disability. The claims file must be made available to the examiner. All necessary tests and studies should be accomplished, and all clinical findings should be reported in detail. 2. Then, readjudicate the Veteran’s claim. If the decision remains adverse to the Veteran, he and his representative should be furnished a supplemental statement of the case (SSOC) and afforded an appropriate period within which to respond thereto. DONNIE R. HACHEY Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans’ Appeals Attorney for the Board J. Barone, 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.