13-20 882, 13-20 882

Veteran served on active duty from July 1962 to March 1966.
This matter is an appeal from a January 2012 VA RO rating decision.
The issue on appeal is entitlement to an initial compensable rating for bilateral hearing loss.
The Veteran is represented by The American Legion.
The Board remanded the case due to the age of the last VA audiology examination (January 2012) and the need for a contemporaneous evaluation.
Actions contemplated include obtaining records and scheduling a current VA audiology examination before readjudication.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Entitlement to an initial compensable rating for bilateral hearing loss	Examination is stale; need current assessment	Board/VA requires contemporaneous medical evaluation	Remanded for current examination and records; not decided on merits

Green v. Derwinski, 1 Vet. App. 121 (1991) (duty to provide thorough and contemporaneous medical examination)
Caffrey v. Brown, 6 Vet. App. 377 (1994) (contemporaneous examination required when prior is too remote)
Kowalski v. Nicholson, 19 Vet. App. 171 (2005) (duty to assist and cooperation of veteran; consequences of failure to report)
Wood v. Derwinski, 1 Vet. App. 190 (1991) (expeditious handling of remands)