Hearing Aid Tax Credit Event A Huge Success

The Hearing Loss Association of Michigan (HLA-MI) and the Michigan chapter of the Alexander Graham Bell Association for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (Michigan AB Bell) were delighted to host an event for Senator Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) featuring federal legislation that if passed will provide a tax credit for hearing aids.

Senator Stabenow, speaking to a packed room, emphasized the importance of enacting the Hearing Aid Tax Credit (S. 1019) to help people and families who need hearing aids.

Sen. Stabenow urged the audience to continue efforts in support of S.1019, especially to help families with children who have hearing loss and for adults with hearing loss who face a difficult job market. She noted that she is working within the Senate Finance Committee, of which she is a member, to promote passage of the bill. She added that the bill was ultimately about “whether we as a country can fully benefit from the skills, knowledge and talent of people with hearing loss.”

A chance meeting at a farmer’s market between Senator Debbie Stabenow of Michigan and a HLA-MI volunteer paved the way to this hugely successful event. The planners, who had only three weeks to organize this event, were rewarded when on Friday evening of Labor Day weekend when 170 people gathered at the Kellogg Center on the campus of Michigan State University to attend the event. Many HLAA members were in the audience along with members from the Alexander Graham Bell Association for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing. Members of the Deaf and DeafBlind communities and hearing health care professionals were also in attendance. Several people drove between two and three hours to be a part of this event.

The program to honor Senator Stabenow opened with several children leading the Pledge of Allegiance. As children have a way of doing, they set the tone for the evening by creating smiles and warming hearts.

As part of the program, four Michigan residents described the effectiveness of their hearing aids and discussed the difficulties related to the lack of financial assistance when hearing aids are needed. Two of them, Nan Asher and Dottie Wendell, both HLAA chapter members, shared stories related to hearing aids. Nan started wearing a hearing aid at the age of 4. After 11 years the aid was held together with rubber bands. After binaural aids were purchased for Nan at the age of 14, she became a straight A student. Nan needs new hearing aids but noted the high cost of aids and that a tax credit would be helpful. She stated that hearing aids are the third most expensive item an individual will purchase, after a home and a car.

Dottie shared a story about a friend who helped her mother purchase two needed hearing aids. She found here was very little financial support available. Her mother’s insurance paid for only one hearing aid. She wondered whether that would be like the insurance company deciding to pay for glasses with only one lens.

The event was the 11th in a series of grassroots initiatives in support of the Hearing Aid Tax Credit sponsored by HIA in partnership with HLAA, AG Bell, IHS and supported by ASHA, AAA and ADA. Other successful events have been held in California, Maryland, Nevada, Pennsylvania, Texas and Wisconsin.

The Hearing Aid Tax Credit currently has 10 co-sponsors in the U.S. Senate, including 3 members of the Senate Finance Committee, and 125 co-sponsors in the House of Representatives including 15 members of the Ways and Means Committee. Visit http://www.hearingaidtaxcredit.org/ to learn more.

Thanks to Ann Liming of Michigan for her contributions to this story.