Bilateral Hearing Loss

[GBArmy]

In simple terms, bilateral disabilities would be having an additional "bonus" from the VA to help compensate the fact that having a disability on one side of your body, say left knee,  is more of a handicap if you should have a corresponding disability on the other lower extremity, than rating them completely separate.  So 10% for left knee, 10% for right knee, plus an additional 10% (10+19=19 x 10%=1.9 Add the 1.9 to the 19 and the bilateral number for your knees is 21%. It helps a lot when you climb the disability claim ladder. (I believe this is correct without using a calculator that does bilateral.) Here's where it gets a little wonky. I have s-c bilateral hearing loss by the VA and it is rated at 10%. What? If it is BILATERAL and I have hearing loss in both ears, why is it not 21% instead of 10%? Either the VA is using a different definition when talking about hearing loss, or my disability is miscalculated.  Any comments welcome.

[Buck52]

 

I got to say the way the VA Sets the Criteria/Guidelines for hearing loss  for us Veterans  is very very complicated and this is why we must trust the VA to figure it all out  , if you do not understand the VA Criteria   then you better leave that up to the VA Raters  that's what they get paid to do., if you have any discrepancies  maybe you should see a private state license certified Dr and respected  experienced  Audiologist and bring the VA Criteria /Guidelines  with you ask them to figure out what your hearing loss is by showing them your VA HEARING TEST.

However it helps to know how they rate you so you need to know just how they rate hearing loss.  so you get a proper and correct rating, we call it low balling us if they give us a rate that is under the rating criteria, so its good to know your rating criteria for what your claiming.

Yeah I am dang near deaf.  but the aids do help some., but please know this is just the way they did my hearing loss claim test, other veterans with hearing loss may be different but hearing loss is hearing loss . The VA has their way and their criteria to evaluate each veteran with hearing loss and they evaluate each ear separate....but its still called bilateral hearing loss according to the VA Criteria  with some special patterns for some veterans that show up at the time of the hearing loss evaluation. (Testing)

VA Hearing loss critera is based on Bilateral hearing loss.

Please Note*  We are all here to help our fellow veterans with their claims and questions, were not here to prove anyone wrong  were here to help veterans.

Edited February 2, 2021 by Buck52