OFFICE OF THE GOVERNOR
INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA 46204-2797
FRANK O’BANNON
GOVERNOR
For immediate release draft-1 Wednesday,
December 27, 2000
O’Bannon announces unique program to
quickly help infants with hearing problems
An
infant’s world is full of wonder, but that tiny child can miss out on a lot if he
or she has trouble hearing.
Governor Frank O’Bannon today announced a new
program, thought to be the first of its kind in the nation, to lend hearing
aids to infants in the critical first weeks of a child’s life.
The
goal is not only to provide hearing assistance to children as young as several
weeks of age, but also to do so quickly. That’s because any delay, while
parents try to round up the finances to buy a hearing aid, could get the infant
off to a late start in learning to recognize words and to talk, O’Bannon said.
The new Infant Hearing Aid Program is a team
effort by the state’s Family and Social Services Administration (FSSA), Indiana
Lions Speech and Hearing Inc. and Riley Hospital for Children.
The Lions group will buy 165 hearing aids over
the next three years at a cost of $137,000.
The hospital then will lend these hearing aids to families to help their
infants as soon as hearing loss is detected.
There will be no cost to families taking part in First Steps, Medicaid or other state programs for Hoosiers with disabilities. Other families may have to pay about $50, compared to several hundred dollars if they had to bear the full expense of the hearing aid, the governor noted.
“Each year in Indiana, about 250 babies are
born with some type of hearing impairment. Now, thanks to the support of the
Lions, we can help many of these youngest Hoosiers sooner and more
effectively,” O’Bannon said.
“Now that we can detect hearing impairment in
infants within the first three months of life, it’s important to fit them with
hearing aids immediately to minimize any developmental delay,” said Allan
Diefendorf, M.D., who chairs the Governor’s Advisory Board for Newborn
Screening and Intervention.
“This program also allows us to determine which
type of aid is appropriate for each infant before the aid is purchased,” he
added. Diefendorf is an associate professor at the Indiana University School of
Medicine and serves as director of audiology and speech/language pathology at
Riley Hospital for Children, part of Clarian Health Partners.
Fifty-five hearing aids will be purchased
during the first year of the program — 25 analog, 15 analog programmable and 15
digital programmable. The aids are worn
behind the ear, with a custom ear mold made for each child.
Another benefit of the program is that parents
won’t have to invest in one type of hearing aid, only to discover their child
would do better with a different type, O’Bannon pointed out.
By state law, every newborn is screened for
hearing loss. Audiologists use
electro-physiologic testing on infants, rather than methods requiring children
to signal what they hear.
Electro-physiologic testing offers an objective measure of auditory
functioning.
“The infant hearing aid program enhances our ability
to help children with hearing disabilities almost as soon as they’re born,”
said Maureen Greer, who directs the FSSA’s First Steps program. First Steps provides early intervention for
families which have infants and toddlers with developmental delays or who show
signs of being at risk for certain delays in the future.
The Lions long have been known for their work
aiding those with hearing disabilities. In addition to the Hearing Aid Loaner
Bank, Indiana Lions Speech and Hearing programs include hearing screenings for
pre-schoolers and funding for scholarships, research and other work.
Here is cutline information for photo
available at www.state.in.us/gov
.
Morgan Kincaid of Indianapolis, who
will celebrate her first birthday January 4, models a new hearing aid sponsored
by the new Infant Hearing Aid Program.
Reporters’ contacts: Phil Bremen or
Cheryl Reed, 317-232-4578;
Andrew Stoner, FSSA, 317-233-4453;
Dr. Allan Diefendorf, Riley Hospital/IU
School of Medicine, 317-630-8980;
Dan Richison, Indiana Lions Speech and Hearing, 765-747-0661.