A bill introduced by Minnesota Senator Tina Smith may ease the way for veterans to receive treatment for tinnitus or hearing loss related to their military service, according to an article on the ABC 6 News/KAAL-TV website.

The Veterans Hearing Benefits Act of 2018 was intended to remove the red tape for veterans seeking treatment for hearing-related issues by establishing a “presumption of service-connection for certain veterans with tinnitus or hearing loss, and for other purposes,” according to the GovTrack website. Currently, veterans are required to prove that their injuries occurred during their time in the military, a potentially daunting process since most don’t get diagnosed until after discharge, according to the ABC 6 News article.

“What I heard from Minnesota veterans is that they have to jump through all sorts of hoops and cut through red tape to get the hearing benefit that they need,” Smith was quoted in the article as saying.

Though the bill died in Congress the same year it was introduced, it’s been included in a January 20, 2022 companion bill sponsored by Rep. Nydia M. Velazquez, [D-NY], Hear our Heroes Act of 2022.

To read the article in its entirety, please click here.

Source: ABC 6 News, GovTrack