Citation Nr: 22019871
Decision Date: 04/03/22	Archive Date: 04/03/22

DOCKET NO. 18-35 809
DATE: April 3, 2022

REMANDED

Entitlement to a compensable rating for service-connected bilateral hearing loss is remanded.

Entitlement to a total disability evaluation based upon individual unemployability (TDIU) is remanded.

REASONS FOR REMAND

The Veteran served on active duty from January 1975 until June 1982.

In October 2021, the Veteran testified at a hearing before the undersigned Veterans Law Judge. A transcript of that hearing is of record. 

Entitlement to a compensable rating for service-connected bilateral hearing loss is remanded.

The Veteran asserts that his service-connected bilateral hearing loss warrants a compensable disability rating. 

The claim must be remanded for a current examination. The Veteran testified at the hearing that his hearing loss disability has worsened since his last VA audiological examination, which was conducted in January 2017. Given the amount of time since the last VA audiological examination and the Veteran's sworn testimony that his conditioned has worsened, a new examination is needed. 

Entitlement to TDIU is remanded.

Adjudication of the TDIU claim is deferred as it is inextricably intertwined with the resolution of the remanded issue.

The matters are REMANDED for the following action:

1. Obtain all VA treatment records from November 2021 until the present. 

2. After completion of the above, schedule the Veteran for an examination by an appropriate clinician to determine the current severity of his service-connected bilateral hearing loss.  The examiner should provide a full description of the disability and report all signs and symptoms necessary for evaluating the Veteran's disability under the rating criteria.  The examiner must complete the corresponding VA disability benefits questionnaire (DBQ), provide a full description of the disability and report all signs and symptoms necessary for evaluating the Veteran's disability under the rating criteria.

3. After completion of the above development and any additionally indicated development, readjudicate the issues on appeal, including the inextricably intertwined issue of entitlement to TDIU.  

 

M.E. Larkin

Veterans Law Judge

Board of Veterans' Appeals

Attorney for the Board	M.D. Collins, 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 This decision is not precedential and does not establish VA policies or interpretations of general applicability. 38 C.F.R. § 20.1303.