NYSA of SHHH, Inc.
New York State Association of 
Self Help for Hard of  Hearing People, Inc.
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 Newborn Screening Bills Succeed – Locally and Nationally!!
– Lise Hamlin
If babies could cheer, you'd be hearing a rousing Hurrah! from the little ones in New York State this year! Both the federal and state newborn hearing screening laws were passed and signed by their respective executives. Families can rest assured that they will have an opportunity to catch hearing loss right from the beginning. A far cry from the bad old days when we had to wait until delayed speech clued the family into the problem. (Comedienne Kathy Buckley relates in her one-woman show "Now Hear This!" that she was eight years old and had been regarded as "retarded" for years before doctors finally discovered her hearing loss. As she says, "... and they called ME slow!")

The newborn hearing screening legislation that was approved by the New York State Legislature this session was signed into law by Governor Pataki in November 1999, and goes into effect April 2000. The law requires:

  • The New York State Commissioner of Health to establish a program to screen newborns.
  • Provision for follow-up screenings including referrals for screening or care.
  • Provision for reimbursement of health care providers performing services under the program
  • Each institution caring for newborn infants will either provide such a program or refer the patient to receive hearing screening services.
On the national front, language from the Walsh bill that was introduced in Congress this session, and the companion bill in the Senate, the Snowe bill, was incorporated into the Omnibus Appropriations bill that was signed by President Clinton in late November. That bill provides seed money to medical facilities to start up newborn hearing screening programs across the country. Newborn screening is not mandated by this law, but seed money is there to support these programs. We hope every medical facility providing services to newborns and infants will take advantage of this new funding source, and we urge everyone to encourage their local hospitals to provide newborn hearing screenings.

For more information about the legislation and newborn screening, check the SHHH web page, www.shhh.org, the ASHA web page, www.asha.org, or the League for the Hard of Hearing web page, www.lhh.org.

Many thanks to all SHHH members who took the time to write their state and federal representatives. Now would be a good time to take another minute to thank your representatives for their attention to this important issue.