1. Short title
This Act may be cited as the “Reducing Barriers to Veterans’ Benefits Act”.
Reducing Barriers to Veterans’ Benefits Act
A BILL
To amend title 38, United States Code, to establish a presumption of service connection for certain veterans with tinnitus or hearing loss.
2. Findings
Congress finds the following:
Tinnitus is the most common service-connected disability for veterans from all periods of service, accounting for almost 841,000 individuals.
Hearing loss is the second leading service-connected disability for veterans from all periods of service, accounting for almost 702,000 individuals.
Since fiscal year 1999, the number of veterans with service-connected disability for tinnitus has increased by an average rate of 17 percent each year.
The number of tinnitus disabilities has grown from 128,600 in fiscal year 1999 to 840,900 in fiscal year 2011, an increase of more than 500 percent.
3. Presumption of service-connection for hearing loss and tinnitus
Presumption—
In general— Subchapter II of chapter 11 of title 38, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following new section:
“1119. Presumption of service connection for hearing loss associated with particular military occupational specialties or combat service
“(a) In general
“(1) For purposes of section 1110 of this title, and subject to section 1113 of this title, diagnosed hearing loss, tinnitus, or both of a veteran described in paragraph (2) shall be considered to have been incurred in or aggravated by the service of the veteran, notwithstanding that there is no record of evidence of such hearing loss or tinnitus, as the case may be, during the period of such service.
“(2) A veteran described in this paragraph is a veteran who while on active military, naval, or air service—
“(A) was assigned to a military occupational specialty or equivalent described in subsection (b); or
“(B) served in combat against a hostile force during a period of hostilities (as defined in section 1712A(a)(2)(B) of this title).
“(b) Military occupational specialty—A military occupational specialty or equivalent referred to in subsection (a)(2)(A) is a military occupational specialty or equivalent, if any, that the Secretary determines in regulations prescribed under this section in which individuals assigned to such military occupational specialty or equivalent in the active military, naval, or air service are or were likely to be exposed to a sufficiently high level of acoustic trauma as to result in permanent hearing loss, tinnitus, or both.
“(c) Determination
“(1) If the Secretary determines under subsection (b) that a presumption of service connection is warranted for a military occupational specialty or equivalent, the Secretary, not later than 60 days after the date of the determination, shall issue proposed regulations setting forth the Secretary’s determination.
“(2) If the Secretary determines under subsection (b) that a presumption of service connection is not warranted for a military occupational specialty or equivalent, the Secretary, not later than 60 days after the date of the determination, shall—
“(A) publish the determination in the Federal Register; and
“(B) submit to the Committees on Veterans’ Affairs of the Senate and the House of Representatives a report on the determination, including a justification for the determination.”
Clerical amendment— The table of sections at the beginning of chapter 11 of such title is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 1118 the following new item:
Presumption rebuttable— Section 1113 of title 38, United States Code, is amended by striking “or 1118” each place it appears and inserting “1118, or 1119”.
Presumption during peacetime service— Section 1137 of title 38, United States Code, is amended by striking “and 1113” and inserting “1113, and 1119”.
Effective date— Section 1119 of title 38, United States Code, as added by subsection (a)(1), shall apply with respect to a claim for compensation made on or after the date that is 60 days after the date on which the Secretary prescribes regulations pursuant to subsection (c)(1) of such section.