Sample Letters / Complaint Instructions
for Issues in Hearing Health
Sample Letter on Direct Access
Dear (Representative/Senator) ________:
As a resident
of (City/State),
and an individual with hearing loss, I
am writing to ask you to cosponsor the
Hearing Health Accessibility Act (HR 2329
introduced by Reps Carolyn McCarthy (D-NY)
and Vernon Ehlers (R-Mich),
and
S. 1410 by Senator Norm Coleman (R-Minn),
respectively. This legislation would allow
Medicare beneficiaries the option of going
directly to a qualified audiologist for
hearing and balance diagnostic tests.
At present, Medicare patients with hearing loss or balance problems must first see a physician and obtain a physician referral to an audiologist. The requirement of a physician referral is unnecessary and restricts Medicare beneficiaries’ access to hearing health care. Hearing loss in the Medicare population is under-diagnosed and under-treated. Under-treating hearing loss often leads to isolation from society and depression, and negatively impacts the quality of life for people who have hearing difficulties.
Having both physicians and audiologists as entry points to the system would greatly improve patient access to hearing care, especially for Medicare beneficiaries who live in underserved areas and low-income beneficiaries who may be deterred by the cost of a physician visit. Since 1992, the Department of Veterans Affairs has allowed veterans to see an audiologist directly and has indicated that direct access to audiology services provides quality hearing health care and is “cost effective.” The Office of Personnel Management, and many private health plans now allow participants in their respective heath care programs direct access to audiologists as well. Medicare beneficiaries should provide the same access to audiologists for covered hearing and balance testing. Congress has urged that Medicare follow the example of these other federal health care programs. In the report accompanying the 2003 Omnibus Appropriations Bill, Congress recommended that the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) allow Medicare beneficiaries to see an audiologist directly for covered services.
If you
have any questions, please call Brenda
Battat, Director of Public Policy for
HLAA at 301-657-2248. e-mail battat@hearingloss.org.
Or Jodi Chappell, Director of Health Care
Policy for the American Academy of Audiology
at 703-226-1032.
Thank you for your consideration.
Sincerely,
(NAME / ADDRESS)
FIND E-MAIL ADDRESSES FOR YOUR ELECTED OFFICIALS AT: www.congress.org
Sample Letter for the Hearing Aid Tax Credit
Dear Representative_______________,
As a resident of (City/State) and a person who knows first-hand the challenges of hearing loss, I am contacting you to urge your co-sponsorship and support of HR. 414, the Hearing Aid Assistance Tax Credit Act. This fiscally responsible bill would provide a tax credit of up to $500 per hearing aid, once every five years. The tax credit would be available either for persons over 55, or for parents purchasing a hearing aid for a dependent child.
This modest bill would help me and other older adults who need hearing aids, but simply cannot afford them. HR. 414 is a way to address the problem of access to hearing aids for those who need them
Thank
you for your time and consideration of
this important bill that would improve
my quality of life, as well as the lives
other Americans with hearing loss. For
additional information or to sign onto
HR. 414, please contact HLAA Public Policy
Director Brenda Battat at battat@hearingloss.org.
Thank you for your consideration of this important matter.
Sincerely,
(Name / Address)
FIND E-MAIL ADDRESSES FOR YOUR ELECTED OFFICIALS AT: www.congress.org
Sample Letter of Support for EHDI
Dear (Representative/Senator) ________,
As a resident of (City/State), I write to express strong support for the early hearing detection and intervention (EHDI) programs within the Maternal and Child Health Block Grants of the Health Resources Services Administration (URSA) and the National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities (NCBDDD) of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Every day 33 babies are born in the United States with permanent hearing loss, making it one of the most frequently occurring birth defects. The impact of delayed detection and intervention can last a lifetime. When hearing loss is found early, intervention and treatment can produce dramatic improvements in child speech and language development by school age. Federal seed grants to states passed in 1999 have helped bring about significant progress in state early hearing detection and intervention (EHDI) programs. But to ensure appropriate early intervention, states need greater federal assistance to help initiate appropriate screening, follow-up services and tracking programs.
In 1998, prior to this assistance, 22% of babies were reported as having received a screening for hearing loss. This year approximately 90% of newborns will be screened for hearing loss before I month of age. Less than half of those infants diagnosed with hearing loss are enrolled in an early intervention program by 6 months of age. These results validate the need for continued federal participation to help ensure that all states and U.S. territories are given the opportunity to successfully put in place comprehensive EHDI programs so that no child is left behind.
Securing funding at this time will ensure that every American newborn child has an equal chance to reach his or her full potential.
Please advocate for an appropriations plan that extends funding for this invaluable program.
Sincerely,
(Name / Address)
FIND E-MAIL ADDRESSES FOR YOUR ELECTED OFFICIALS AT: www.congress.org
Cordless Telephone Hearing Aid Compatibility
If you have experienced difficulty using cordless telephones with your hearing aid, click on the following link for information on how to file a complaint.
The FCC requires that all emergency television programming be accessible to people with hearing loss.
Filing an Informal Complaint with the FCC:
Include the following documentation in your complaint:
• Name, address, telephone number and email address
• Name and address of the programmer (i.e. News Channel 5) as well as the name and address of the distributor (i.e. ABC) who the program
• The date and time that the emergency information was not accessible
• The type of emergency
• If you know it, the type of information not provided in an accessible format
