Brenda Battat, Executive Director of Hearing Loss Association of America,
arranged a meeting with the U.S. Surgeon General, Rear Admiral Steven Galson, and Vice Surgeon General Rear Admiral Robert Williams, to discuss the importance of hearing health and urge the Surgeon General to focus attention on hearing loss prevention and treatment issues.
A coalition of organizations representing the hearing health community attended the meeting to emphasize the broad support for focusing on these issues. Among other things, the group urged the Surgeon General to expand a health status survey of people who use sign language to include people with hearing loss, and to focus on health literacy challenges for people with communication disorders. The group also discussed the financial barriers to treatment and emphasized the importance of assisting children with hearing loss as soon as possible.
Picture above, from left: Karen Sealander, International Hearing Society; Barbara Raimondo, Natational Association of the Deaf; Alex Graham, A.G. Bell Association for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing; Surgeon General Steven Galson; Andy Bopp, Hearing Industries Association; Brenda Battat, Hearing Loss Association of America; Pam Mason, American Speech Hearing Language Association; Phil Bongiorno, American Academy of Audiology; Joy Trimmer, American Academy of Otolaryngology – Head & Neck Surgery; and Deputy Surgeon General Robert Williams.
Source: Hearing Industries Association
