I 

113TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 369 

To amend title 38, United States Code, to establish a presumption of service 

connection for certain veterans with tinnitus or hearing loss. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JANUARY 23, 2013 

Mr. BENISHEK introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 

Committee on Veterans’ Affairs 

A BILL 

To amend title 38, United States Code, to establish a presumption of service connection for certain veterans with 

tinnitus or hearing loss. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Reducing Barriers to 

5 Veterans’ Benefits Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress finds the following: 

8 (1) Tinnitus is the most common service-con9 nected disability for veterans from all periods of 

10 service, accounting for almost 841,000 individuals. 


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1 (2) Hearing loss is the second leading service2 connected disability for veterans from all periods of 

3 service, accounting for almost 702,000 individuals. 

4 (3) Since fiscal year 1999, the number of vet5 erans with service-connected disability for tinnitus 

6 has increased by an average rate of 17 percent each 

7 year. 

8 (4) The number of tinnitus disabilities has 

9 grown from 128,600 in fiscal year 1999 to 840,900 

10 in fiscal year 2011, an increase of more than 500 

11 percent. 

12 SEC. 3. PRESUMPTION OF SERVICE-CONNECTION FOR 

13 HEARING LOSS AND TINNITUS. 

14 (a) PRESUMPTION.— 

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subchapter II of chapter 11 

16 of title 38, United States Code, is amended by add17 ing at the end the following new section: 

18 ‘‘§ 1119. Presumption of service connection for hear19 ing loss associated with particular mili20 tary occupational specialties or combat 

21 service 

22 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—(1) For purposes of section 1110 

23 of this title, and subject to section 1113 of this title, diag24 nosed hearing loss, tinnitus, or both of a veteran described 

25 in paragraph (2) shall be considered to have been incurred 


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1 in or aggravated by the service of the veteran, notwith2 standing that there is no record of evidence of such hear3 ing loss or tinnitus, as the case may be, during the period 

4 of such service. 

5 ‘‘(2) A veteran described in this paragraph is a vet6 eran who while on active military, naval, or air service— 

7 ‘‘(A) was assigned to a military occupational 

8 specialty or equivalent described in subsection (b); or 

9 ‘‘(B) served in combat against a hostile force 

10 during a period of hostilities (as defined in section 

11 1712A(a)(2)(B) of this title). 

12 ‘‘(b) MILITARY OCCUPATIONAL SPECIALTY.—A mili13 tary occupational specialty or equivalent referred to in 

14 subsection (a)(2)(A) is a military occupational specialty or 

15 equivalent, if any, that the Secretary determines in regula16 tions prescribed under this section in which individuals as17 signed to such military occupational specialty or equiva18 lent in the active military, naval, or air service are or were 

19 likely to be exposed to a sufficiently high level of acoustic 

20 trauma as to result in permanent hearing loss, tinnitus, 

21 or both. 

22 ‘‘(c) DETERMINATION.—(1) If the Secretary deter23 mines under subsection (b) that a presumption of service 

24 connection is warranted for a military occupational spe25 cialty or equivalent, the Secretary, not later than 60 days 


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1 after the date of the determination, shall issue proposed 

2 regulations setting forth the Secretary’s determination. 

3 ‘‘(2) If the Secretary determines under subsection (b) 

4 that a presumption of service connection is not warranted 

5 for a military occupational specialty or equivalent, the Sec6 retary, not later than 60 days after the date of the deter7 mination, shall— 

8 ‘‘(A) publish the determination in the Federal 

9 Register; and 

10 ‘‘(B) submit to the Committees on Veterans’ 

11 Affairs of the Senate and the House of Representa12 tives a report on the determination, including a jus13 tification for the determination.’’. 

14 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sec15 tions at the beginning of chapter 11 of such title is 

16 amended by inserting after the item relating to sec17 tion 1118 the following new item: 

‘‘1119. Presumption of service connection for hearing loss associated with particular military occupational specialties or combat service.’’. 

18 (b) PRESUMPTION REBUTTABLE.—Section 1113 of 

19 title 38, United States Code, is amended by striking ‘‘or 

20 1118’’ each place it appears and inserting ‘‘1118, or 

21 1119’’. 

22 (c) PRESUMPTION DURING PEACETIME SERVICE.— 

23 Section 1137 of title 38, United States Code, is amended 

24 by striking ‘‘and 1113’’ and inserting ‘‘1113, and 1119’’. 


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1 (d) EFFECTIVE DATE.—Section 1119 of title 38, 

2 United States Code, as added by subsection (a)(1), shall 

3 apply with respect to a claim for compensation made on 

4 or after the date that is 60 days after the date on which 

5 the Secretary prescribes regulations pursuant to sub6 section (c)(1) of such section. 

Æ 


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