Hearing Aid Assistance
Tax Credit Act
(H.R. 414 & S. 1060)
The International Hearing Society urges you to support the bipartisan Hearing Aid Assistance Tax Credit that was reintroduced in the House of Representatives by Jim Ryun (R-KS) and in the Senate by Norm Coleman (R-MN). These bills would allow persons over age 55, or parents of a hearingimpaired child, a $500 tax credit per hearing instrument purchased once every 5 years. This hearing aid tax credit would help countless Americans who need hearing instruments, but simply cannot afford them. The benefits of reducing special education costs for children through increased hearing aid usage are immense, as are the benefits of minimizing psychological and mental disorders associated with untreated hearing loss in older adults. We urge all consumers to contact your Representative and Senators in support of H.R. 414 and S. 1060:
� Senator Diane Feinstein (D-CA) www.feinstein.senate.gov One Post Street #2450, San Francisco, CA 94104 (415) 393-0707
� Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA) www.boxer.senate.gov 1700 Montgomery Street #240, San Francisco, CA (415) 403-0100
� Representative Wally Herger (R-CA 2nd) www.house.gov/herger 55 Independence Circle #104, Chico, CA 95973 (530) 893-8363
Kenneth returned from a five-day trip to Denmark on March 13th.
He traveled there to hear about Oticon's newest hearing aid called the "Delta." It is an "open ear" type device and very similar to the highly successful Vivatone and SeboTek products that we have been using for the last year or so. If it seems as though we have been talking a lot about these new hearing aids, it is because we have! This is the future of hearing aids for mild to moderate hearing losses. Typically these types of devices do not provide a lot of volume, but rather enhance sound quality and clarity giving the user improved word recognition and understanding.
So how is the Oticon "open ear" hearing device different?
It is very similar to the Vivatone in size and style. It appears to use a very similar speaker link as well, except that the Delta has several different tips. It also uses Oticon's very successful "artificial intelligence" sound processing, which can differentiate between speech in quiet, speech in noise, and noise only and instantly make the appropriate adjustment. It can also tell if sounds are coming from the front or the rear, and automatically switch to directional mode, which picks up more sound from the front, and less from behind.
Many people like the ability to change hearing aid settings themselves, and both the Vivatone and SeboTek allow for that. The Oticon Delta is fully automatic with no program button. The SeboTek also can fit more severe hearing losses than both the Vivatone and the Oticon Delta.
With such a broad array of "open ear" hearing devices available today, we can select the very best model according to your needs and lifestyle. Please see our seminar announcement in the newsletter to find out more about these exciting new hearing devices.
Once again, some of the benefits to "open ear" hearing solutions:
- no occlusion
- very inconspicuous
- chewing isn't bothersome
- your own voice sounds natural
- background noise is more in the background
- everyone gets a demo before making a decision to purchase
