Hearing Loss From Earplug Usage
The Minnesota based 3M business manufactured the Dual-Ended Combat Arms™ Earplugs which were employed by military personnel during the period 2003 to 2015 during fighting and training exercises in order to protect soldier hearing from gunfire and explosions. Hearing problems are one of the most frequent issues suffered by veterans so hearing defense is a serious worry for U.S. soldiers. Based on various scenarios, the 3M Dual-Ended Combat Arms™ Earplugs were created to offer two different levels of defense. The dual-ended plugs have a design that is easily recognizable. As their name implies, they were made of of two outward facing earplugs, one green and one yellow.
When the yellow part was put inside the ear, this was recognized as Weapons Fire mode. This level was created to offer normal hearing for top situational awareness. It would let staff to communicate, accept commands and listen to other important sounds on the battlefield whilst continuing to provide protection from peak level noises like gunfire and explosions. This would have been the desired level in combat situations.
When the green end was placed inside the ear, this was referred to as Closed Protection mode. Constant Protection was designed to stop all noise more completely in order to offer full defense. According to 3M, this mode is for high-level sustained noise situations such as those in tracked vehicles and air support. This mode might have also been used in many standard practice exercises and environments as well.
Claimed Hearing Issues
Combat Arms EarplugsManufactured by 3M and its predecessor, Aearo Technologies, Inc, Dual Ended Combat Arms Earplugs, Version 2 (CAEv2) were made for military use and used widely by thousands of servicemen deployed to Afghanistan and Iraq between 2003 to 2015. The CAEV2 was produced to let two separate protection modes, Open Fire mode and Closed Protection mode. The appropriate level is determined by which side of the plug is placed into the ear, yellow for Weapons Fire mode, green means Constant Protection mode. Weapons Fire mode is created to allow for hearing speaking and communicating yet still protecting against damaging sound levels from gunfire and explosions. The Constant Protection level blocked all noise more fully which was useful for personnel operating in track vehicles, in air support or during regular training. Both settings were claimed to block sounds up to a specific standard but in recent legal action, the government has alleged that neither mode of the ear plug met the Noise Reduction Rating (NRR) which 3M claimed because of an unreported design error.
$9.1 million Settlement Between 3M and the U.S. Government
In July of 2018, the United States Department of Justice reported that 3M had agreed to pay $9.1 million in order to resolve claims that they knowingly sold the Combat Arms Earplugs v2 to the U.S. military without admitting errors that hampered the effectiveness of the hearing defense device. The lawsuit was originally placed in 2016 under the whistleblower provision of the False Claims Act that permits private citizens to sue on behalf of the federal government whenever they believe that a defendant has made incorrect claims for government funds. In this case, the whistleblower was granted $1,911,000 for their part in the lawsuit.
According to the Department of Justice press announcement, the settlement resolved claims that 3M violated the False Claims Act by selling or causing to be sold defective earplugs to the Defense Logistics Agency. Specifically, the United States alleged that 3M, and its predecessor, Aearo Technologies, Inc., knew the CAEv2 was too short for correct insertion into users’ ears and that the earplugs might come loose slightly and then didn’t perform well for certain individuals. It’s additionally claimed that this design defect was known to 3M but wasn’t relayed the Department of Defense.
earplug lawsuit to Personnel
If the claims against 3M are true, thousands of servicemen might have used error prone earplugs that didn’t protect them as the product was supposed to. Based on the alleged design error, the plugs could loosen while in the ear unknown to the soldier letting damaging noise to make their way into the ear. Dangerous sound levels can have serious and permanent effects including partial or total hearing loss, or tinnitus, a ringing in the ears. Hearing loss is one of the most frequent issues suffered by active duty and former servicemen. Tinnitus, which might be debilitating, is just as prevalent. According to a research scientist with the VA Portland Healthcare System, last year there were over 1.6 million veterans looking for medical care for chronic tinnitus.
You Could be Eligible for Compensation
If you or a loved one were provided Dual-Ended Combat Arms Earplugs during service in the military between 2003 and 2015, and have since experienced partial or total hearing damage or suffer from tinnitus, your situation should be discussed with the Meneo Law Group to discover every option available to you.
