Write to your Legislator about hearing aid insurance
You can use the
following websites to find your state legislators:
http://www.senate.state.ny.us/
http://www.assembly.state.ny.us/
Here is a sample letter
you can use to write to your State legislator to support the Hearing Aid Insurance bill. You can use it all or customize
it to fit your personal experience. Remember to write; it is an important piece of legislation for all hard of
hearing people. Also please contact your respective chapters (newsletters?) to get this letter writing campaign going
in earnest.
Dear Honorable
( Assemblyman or Senator ):
Legislation has been introduced
that would require health insurance coverage of hearing aids ( Use A04731 if you are writing to your Assemblyperson or S00171
if writing to your senator) for all New Yorkers. I am writing to ask you to vote YES for this legislation.
Hearing
Aids are extraordinarily important for people with hearing loss, and they have significant implications for a person's
economic, mental, and physical well being. Studies have found that people who have significant difficulty communicating
are often under- employed and are more susceptible to host of emotional and physical disorders. Thus, the failure to
cover hearing aids not only penalizes people with hearing loss, but also costs the government significant amounts
stemming from under - utilization of its work force and increased spending on the other needs of employees with hearing
loss. By supporting this bill you are ensuring that all people will have equal access to communication with
their fellow citizens.
We all understand the
importance of hearing aids to:
-
Children who need to
acquire listening skills in order to develop spoken language.
-
Students who are in
a school environment to achieve their greatest potential through education.
-
Those in the workplace
who need to maintain their connection to their associates.
-
Senior people who need
to interact and socialize with others through spoken communication.
There are currently one
in ten people ( one in three for those over 65 ) with a hearing problem. It is important that our nation must begin to
work through equitable coverage policies for aural rehabilitation services and hearing aids in a concerted manner
by both public and private insurance payers.
There is every reason
to believe that this would be a very low cost benefit and should not noticeably affect premium or costs of doing
business for the insurance providers or HMOs. We are only asking that hearing aids be on the same parity as eye
glasses, etc.
Thank you,
Your
Name
