Defense-Base-Act-Lawyers discuss hearing loss in a DBA case

If you are a contractor who has been injured on the job while working overseas in Iraq, Afghanistan or on any military base across the world, your case is covered by the Defense Base Act which is an extension of the Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act. At the Law Offices of Gillis, Mermell & Pacheco, P.A., we have a combination of over 43 years of experience in representing injured workers covered by the Defense Base Act and the Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act. Let us put our years of experience and our reputation to work for you today! Contact us today at mail@gmpcomplaw.com, or go on our website at www.dbalawyers.com and fill out our form on the contact us page, or call us at 305 595 3350.
Here are some very interesting facts and case summaries regarding hearing loss in a DBA or Longshore case coming directly from the Longshore Deskbook from the Benefits Review Board. The Longshore Desk Book is a searchable website which is a public record. According to the Longshore Deskbook:
Section 8(c)(13) was significantly amended in 1984. Prior to 1984, it stated only the number of weeks of compensation for loss of hearing in one ear and in both ears. The amended provision contains five subsections under loss of hearing. Subsections (c)(13)(A) and (B) contain the same language as the pre-amendment provision, stating that claimant may receive compensation for fifty-two weeks for a loss of hearing in one ear or two hundred weeks for a loss of hearing in both ears.
Section 8(c)(13(C) states that an audiogram is presumptive evidence of the extent of claimant’s hearing loss if the following conditions are met: (1) The audiogram was administered by a licensed or certified audiologist or a physician certified in otolaryngology; (2) the employee was provided with a copy of the audiogram and accompanying report at the time it was administered; and (3) no contrary audiogram made at that time is produced. The applicable regulation at 20 C.F.R. §702.441(b) addresses these requirements, notably providing that the report must be received at the time of the audiogram or within 30 days and that the requirement for no contrary audiogram at the “same time” means within thirty days where noise exposure continues or within six months where it does not continue. In addition, subsection (b)(3) of the regulation states that audiometric tests performed prior to enactment of the 1984 Amendments will be considered presumptively valid if employer complied with the requirements in the section for administering the test.
If you have a question about hearing loss or any other question in your DBA or Longshore case, Contact Us today at mail@gmpcomplaw.com, or go on our website at www.dbalawyers.com and fill out our form on the contact us page, or call us at 305 595 3350.

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