Hearing Loss From Ear Plug Usage

The Minneapolis headquartered 3M business made the Dual-Ended Combat Arms™ Earplugs which were employed by military staff from 2003 to 2015 during fighting and training exercises in order to guard staff hearing from gunfire and explosions. Hearing issues are one of the most frequent issues suffered by soldiers so ear protection is a serious worry for U.S. soldiers. Based on different scenarios, the 3M Dual-Ended Combat Arms™ Earplugs were created to provide two different amounts of protection. The dual-ended earplugs have a design that is easily noticeable. As their name suggests, they were made of of two outward facing earplugs, one green and one yellow.

When combat earplugs was inserted inside the ear, this was called as Weapons Fire mode. This mode was created to offer normal hearing for peak situational alertness. It would let soldiers to communicate, accept commands and hear other important sounds on the combat field while still providing defense from peak level sounds such as gunfire and explosions. This would have been the desired mode in combat situations.

When the green part was inserted inside the ear, this was referred to as Closed Protection mode. Constant Protection was designed to stop all sounds more thoroughly in order to provide full protection. According to 3M, this mode is for high-level sustained noise situations like those in tracked vehicles and air support. This mode might have also been used in several standard practice exercises and environments as well.
Alleged Hearing Risks
Combat Arms EarplugsManufactured by 3M and its predecessor, Aearo Technologies, Inc, Dual Ended Combat Arms Earplugs, Version 2 (CAEv2) that were made for military usage and used extensively by thousands of servicemen sent to Afghanistan and Iraq between 2003 to 2015. The CAEV2 was designed to allow for two different protection modes, Open Fire mode and Constant Protection mode. The appropriate level is determined by which part of the earplug is inserted into the ear, yellow means Weapons Fire mode, green means Constant Protection mode. Weapons Fire mode is designed to allow for hearing speaking and communicating while maintaining protection from damaging sound levels from gunfire and explosions. The Constant Protection mode blocked all noise more fully which was useful for soldiers operating in track vehicles, in air support or while regular training. Both settings were purported to block sounds up to a specific level yet in recent legal action, the government has alleged that neither mode of the ear plug met the Noise Reduction Rating (NRR) that 3M alleged due to an unreported design flaw.

$9.1 million Settlement Between 3M and the U.S. Government
In July of 2018, the United States DOJ reported that 3M had agreed to pay $9.1 million to resolve allegations that the company knowingly sold the Combat Arms Earplugs v2 to the U.S. military without disclosing defects that declined the effectiveness of the hearing defense device. The lawsuit was initially filed in 2016 under the whistleblower part of the False Claims Act that allows private parties to sue for the federal government when they believe that a defendant has represented false claims for government funds. In this case, the whistleblower was awarded $1,911,000 for their part in the lawsuit.

Per the DOJ press release, 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 U.S. alleged that 3M, and its predecessor, Aearo Technologies, Inc., were aware that the CAEv2 was too short for correct insertion into users’ ears and that the earplugs could loosen slightly and therefore did not perform well for certain people. It’s additionally alleged that this design error was known to 3M but wasn’t disclosed to the Department of Defense.

Harm to Soldiers
If the allegations against 3M are correct, many servicemen could have used faulty earplugs which did not protect them as the product was intended to. Based on the alleged design flaw, the earplugs could loosen while inside the ear unbeknownst to the soldier allowing damaging sounds to make their way inside the ear. Dangerous noise levels can have serious and lasting effects which include partial or total hearing loss, or tinnitus, a ringing inside the ears. Hearing loss is one of the most common issues suffered by active duty and former service personnel. Tinnitus, which may be debilitating, is just as frequent. According to a research scientist with the VA Portland Healthcare System, last year there were over 1.6 million veterans searching for medical care for chronic tinnitus.

You Could be Eligible for Compensation
If you or a loved one were given Dual-Ended Combat Arms Earplugs during service in the military from 2003 and 2015, and have since suffered partial or total hearing loss or suffer from tinnitus, your scenario should be discussed with the Meneo Law Group to explore every option available to you.