The FCC is considering regulations on Hearing Aid Compatibility on all cell phones, which means ensuring that all phones come equipped with a telecoil. Apple has petitioned to be excluded, saying that its proprietary technology makes its Iphones hearing-aid compatible. This is true, but only if you have a Made for IPhone hearing aid. For … Continue reading Apple moves against hearing-aid users
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New Drug Might Protect Hearing
Hearing loss isn’t something that just comes with age. Your hearing also can be damaged — sometimes irreversibly — by the drugs you take. Ototoxic medications, literally “toxic to the ear,” can include common prescription and nonprescription drugs, ranging from the seemingly benign, like aspirin and ibuprofen, to powerful chemotherapy drugs and certain antibiotics. People with hereditary … Continue reading New Drug Might Protect Hearing
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Keep IPhones hearing friendly. Petition.
This needs to be signed by tonight. Click here to sign: Petitioning Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Stop the FCC from Removing the Telecoil Compatibility Requirement from HAC Phones Hearing Tracker The FCC has proposed new rules that would require Hearing Aid Compatibility (HAC) for all future consumer wireless devices, including next-generation technologies like Wi-Fi calling … Continue reading Keep IPhones hearing friendly. Petition.
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Superbowl and Marlee Matlin
Last minute: Marlee Matlin is signing the national anthem at the SuperBowl tonight. Should be fun to watch Marlee.... and Lady Gaga? ........ Later....... It would have been fun to watch Marlee if the camera had stayed on her for more than 2 seconds.
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Is Hearing Aid Insurance Worth It?
You undoubtedly have insurance for your important valuables. So should you get insurance for your precious hearing aid? The answer is yes, but not right away. New hearing aids come with a warranty from the manufacturer. The length of the warranty, usually up to three years, is based on the device’s level of technology, according … Continue reading Is Hearing Aid Insurance Worth It?
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Scare Tactics: Benefit or Backfire?
Like many others, I've written repeatedly about the negative health consequences of hearing loss. These include a greater risk of falls, depression and isolation, and earlier and more severe cognitive decline. A recent study even linked hearing loss to earlier death. I write about these in part because they are news, the results of solid epidemiological … Continue reading Scare Tactics: Benefit or Backfire?
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Gobsmacked by Rudeness. Frustrated by Technology.
Hearing loss is an invisible disability. There's no white cane or wheelchair to tip off others to your condition. Most people would not yell at someone in a wheelchair for blocking the aisle in a supermarket, or at a blind person for accidentally stepping in front of them. But every once in a while, I … Continue reading Gobsmacked by Rudeness. Frustrated by Technology.
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Hearables, Earables and Earcles: Looking Ahead to 2016
I predict good things for people with hearing loss in 2016, especially in the field of technology, where new kinds of devices to improve hearing are booming. In fact, as the Washington Post recently noted, the hearing device market is in the midst of a "profound disruption" — from traditional hearing aids to lower-priced, nonprescription devices — … Continue reading Hearables, Earables and Earcles: Looking Ahead to 2016
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Traveling with Chargers (and Hearing Aids)
I travel a lot, and I know all the problems — big and small — that can occur when you need to bring myriad devices to help you hear. From annoyances like forgetting to pack backup batteries to major challenges like losing a crucial component of a cochlear implant when it falls off in … Continue reading Traveling with Chargers (and Hearing Aids)
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Hearing Loss? Think Opportunity.
“Hearing loss is such an adventure,” a new acquaintance wrote to me not long ago. This is one comment I’d never heard before. Wow, I thought, she really has reached that elusive state of acceptance. Many people talk about the hearing loss “journey,” from denial to anger to bargaining to depression to acceptance. But an adventure. … Continue reading Hearing Loss? Think Opportunity.
Katherine Bouton: Smart Hearing 