January 10 – The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) appointed Lise Hamlin, director of public policy, as the representative member and Barbara Kelley, executive director, the alternate for HLAA on the FCC’s Disability Advisory Committee (DAC). The DAC was established to advise the Commission on communications access issues for individuals with disabilities
June 9 – the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine hosted a public dissemination meeting for the report Hearing Health Care for Adults: Priorities for Improving Access and Affordability at the Keck Center in Washington, DC.
HLAA2017 Convention was held in Salt Lake City, Utah. Donald Doherty becomes the new chairperson of HLAA.
Awards on the national level were presented as follows
- Rocky Stone Humanitarian Richard H. Meyer
- Board Chair Linda Kozma-Spytek,
- James B. Snow, Jr., M.D. Dan G. Blazer, M.D., Ph.D.
- Keystone Cheri Perazzoli
- Marcia Dugan Advocacy Kevin J. Knabe
- Get in the Hearing Loop Janice Armigo Brown
August 18 – HLAA advocates for legislation which will enable consumers to purchase over-the-counter (OTC) hearing devices. Success! The Over-the-Counter Hearing Aid Act was signed into law by President Donald Trump on August 18 The new law will allow greater innovation and lower product costs with the creation of a new category of FDA-approved hearing devices sold over the counter to adults with mild to moderate hearing loss.
November
HLAA and the Ida Institute (Denmark) sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to expand collaboration in order to develop and promote a person-centered approach to hearing health care.
November 20 – the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) released an Order to update its requirements for hearing aid compatibility and volume control on wireline and wireless telephones. In their news release regarding this new rule, the FCC said, “Under the Hearing Aid Compatibility Act, the Commission is required to establish rules that ensure access by people with hearing loss to telephones manufactured or imported for use in the United States. With today’s action, the Commission continues its efforts to ensure that tens of millions of Americans with hearing loss have access to and can benefit from critical and modern communication technologies and services.”
PARTNERSHIPS
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
The CDC Emergency Partners Information Connection endeavors to disseminate emergency health information and weather alerts to the hearing loss community.
IDA Institute
HLAA’s partnership with the Ida Institute consolidates and expands the collaboration in order to enhance the quality of audiological rehabilitation and support the advancement of hearing care.
KDH Research and Communication
HLAA contributed to development of the Online Resource Center for Older Adults with Cochlear Implants.