With the passage of the Newborn and Infant Hearing Screening and Intervention Act of 1999, which gives grants to states to start newborn hearing screening programs, the United States is getting the average age of identification of hearing loss down to where it should be — in infancy. States have set up infant hearing screening programs. Hearing loss is one of the most common birth defects. My own hearing loss was not identified until I was one and a half years old.
I know the damage that can be done by hearing loss not being identified at an early enough age. I've seen friends and acquaintances struggle with English and in some cases, their careers were held back.
Newborn hearing testing equipment is not perfect. Babies can "fail" testing at birth and then turn out to have normal hearing, while a baby who "passes" screening at birth can later turn out to have a hearing loss. That is why it is important for new parents to bring their babies back for follow-up hearing testing.
Studies have found that children whose hearing losses are identified in infancy may benefit more from amplification, and may develop language and social skills at the same rate and level as hearing peers.
The folowing organizations are concerned with infant hearing screening:
