gymz123

I understand that I am coming to the table late to reply, but I hope this experience is helpful. I was lucky to have both an entrance and an exit hearing test from the service. My problem was typical, I knew I had tinnitus from the moment a cannon went off, and my ear buzzed for the next 50 years. Like others, I had no idea the VA had services to help me with this problem, and my wife told me to get help one day, so I was off to the VA. Within six weeks I was scheduled for a QTC exam, and I went, and the audiologist performed a hearing test. She was very quick, would not answer questions and I was out of the exam in under 30 minutes. I did not feel good about the experience and decided to bring ammo to the fight I felt was coming. While waiting for a decision, I went and had four independent exams done. A couple was free from audiologists who were thankful for military service; the other two cost $75 and $125 which I felt necessary for the backup they gave. Each audiologist told me that my hearing was damaged and I was given copies of the exam. As I expected, the VA declined my QTC test and said I was within parameters of normal hearing. I decided to issue a Notice of Disagreement with the decision, and my VSO wrote it up and sent it to the VA along with the private audiologist test results. I got a decision in six weeks and was awarded 30% and an additional 10% for tinnitus. I was happy that the extra work produced solid results so quickly. Now, three years later, I have noticed that my hearing has progressively gotten worse and I have scheduled a hearing test. I suspect we will go down the same road, but now I have a record, and the VA should be inclined to see a net loss. I'm hoping that's the case, backing up your claim with independent private sources is a powerful tool and argument the VA pays attention to.