Citation Nr: 21029094 Decision Date: 05/12/21 Archive Date: 05/12/21 DOCKET NO. 20-10 794 DATE: May 12, 2021 REMANDED Entitlement to an increased rating in excess of 10 percent for service-connected left ear hearing loss is remanded. REASONS FOR REMAND The Veteran served on active duty in the United States Army from July 1966 to April 1968. This matter comes before the Board of Veterans' Appeals (Board) on appeal from a September 2018 rating decision letter issued by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Regional Office (RO). For the reason noted below, the Board finds that remand is warranted for additional development. As a preliminary matter, the Board notes that Veteran seeks an increased rating in excess of 10 percent for his service-connected hearing loss. Subsequent to the RO issuing a January 2020 Statement of the Case (SOC), the Veteran's representative submitted a formal appeal to the Board in March 2020 and requested a hearing on the matter; the submitted form, however, did not include the Veteran's signature. Later in March 2020, the Veteran submitted a signed formal appeal, indicating that he did not wish to appear for an optional Board hearing. Referral In his September 2019 Notice of Disagreement (NOD) for the claim presently on appeal, the Veteran referenced having right ear hearing loss. As reflected in a January 2020 Report of General Information, the RO contacted the Veteran for clarification of his claim, at which time he requested an application for a new claim for right ear hearing loss. However, the record reflects that in January 2020, a VA notification letter addressed to a different individual (at a different address), regarding a claim for service connection for right ear hearing loss, which was included in the Veteran's claim file in error. The record is void of any further notification letters with enclosures being provided to the Veteran in regard to his request for a new claim. In his March 2020 formal appeal to the Board, the Veteran reiterated his request for the prescribed forms. The record does not indicate that the RO has properly responded to his request. Hence, the Board refers the matter to the Agency of Original Jurisdiction (AOJ) to provide the Veteran with the proper notification and prescribed forms as requested by the Veteran. Entitlement to an increased rating in excess of 10 percent for service-connected left ear hearing loss is remanded. The Veteran asserts that his service-connected left ear hearing loss warrants a disability rating higher than the currently assigned 10 percent evaluation. As an initial matter, the record reflects that all necessary development has not yet been completed in the case. Specifically, in September 2019, the Veteran submitted private medical records that include an October 2018 hearing evaluation report, completed by a private provider, that are written in Spanish. An April 2020 deferred rating note reflects that the RO noted the medical records received in September 2019 required translation prior to directing the appeal to the Board. However, no efforts were undertaken to translate this evidence. Moreover, the RO has not considered the October 2018 hearing evaluation report from the private provider (Island Hearing Center). Although the Veteran submitted this evidence and made VA aware of this private evaluation/treatment in September 2019, the January 2020 Statement of the Case, and the November 2020 Supplemental Statement of the Case (SSOC) do not reflect that the RO acknowledged or considered this evidence. Also, the RO has not undertaken appropriate attempts to obtain any additional records from the identified provider. As a final matter, the Board notes that the claims file includes other records that require translation from Spanish to English. Some of these records have been translated into English, however a complete translation is not of record. On remand, the RO must translate evidence submitted in September 2019, as well as any additional documents that require translation from Spanish to English and associate all English translations with their respective Spanish originals. The matter is REMANDED for the following action: 1. Obtain any outstanding treatment records in accordance with 38 C.F.R. § 3.159, including any additional evaluations or treatment records completed by October 2018 private examiner or other private providers identified by the Veteran. 2. Obtain English language translations of all documents in the claims file that are in Spanish, to include the medical evidence submitted in September 2019. 3. Undertake any additional development deemed necessary, to include obtaining clarification from the October 2018 private examiner regarding whether the Maryland CNC speech recognition testing was performed as part of the evaluation (if so indicated based on the English translated documents) and obtaining an addendum medical opinion to interpret the graphical representation of the October 2018 private examination into numerical results (again, if such is found to be necessary based on the translated documents). 4. After completion of the above, readjudicate the claim, to include consideration of all private medical evidence. If the benefit sought remains denied, provide the Veteran and his representative a SSOC and give him an opportunity to respond prior to returning the case to the Board. DELYVONNE M. WHITEHEAD Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans' Appeals Attorney for the Board Q. Alli, 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.