U.S. flag
				An official website of the United States government
					Here's how you know
        Here's how you know
		U.S. Department of Health & Human Services
			|

			National Institutes of HealthDot gov**Official websites use .gov**
						
						A **.gov** website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.
			Https**Secure .gov websites use HTTPS**
						
            A **lock** (A locked padlock)
            or **https://** means you've safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.  **
Menu
NIDCD Employee Intranet | A–Z Index | En Español


    close

        
        
                      Home
      
    
              Health Info
      
                
  
          **Health Info**
          
    
              Hearing, Ear Infections, and Deafness
      
    
              Balance
      
    
              Taste and Smell
      
    
              Voice, Speech, and Language
      
    
              Información en español
      
    
              Statistics
      
    
              Health Resources
      
    
              Clinical Studies
      
    
              Adult Hearing Health Care
      
    
              Research
      
                
  
          **Research**
          
    
              Extramural Research
      
    
              Intramural Research
      
    
              Building a Diverse Scientific Workforce
      
    
              Scientific Workshop and Meeting Reports
      
    
              Clinical Studies
      
    
              Global Health
      
    
              Grants & Funding
      
                
  
          **Grants & Funding**
          
    
              Types of Grants and Funding
      
    
              How to Apply for a Grant
      
    
              All NIDCD Funding Opportunities
      
    
              The BRAIN Initiative and the NIDCD
      
    
              Training
      
                
  
          **Training**
          
    
              About NIDCD's Research Training Program
      
    
              Types of Research Training Funding Opportunities
      
    
              Research Training in NIDCD Laboratories (Intramural)
      
    
              More Training Resources
      
    
              News & Events
      
                
  
          **News & Events**
          
    
              NIDCD News
      
    
              Grantee News
      
    
              Multimedia
      
    
              Events
      
    
              Sign up. Stay informed.
      
    
              About Us
      
                
  
          **About Us**
          
    
              Messages from the NIDCD Director
      
    
              Mission
      
    
              Strategic Plans
      
    
              NIDCD History and Milestones
      
    
              Organizational Structure and Staff
      
    
              Job Opportunities
      
    
              Congressional Testimony and the NIDCD Budget
      
    
              Advisory Groups and Review Committees
      
    
              Contact Us
      
    
              Get Involved Breadcrumb
    Home
              Research
  
      Accessible and Affordable Hearing Health Care Activities


Improving hearing health care for adults in the United States is an urgent public health problem, and contributing to solutions is a priority for the NIDCD. Approximately 15 percent of American adults, or 37.5 million people, report some degree of hearing loss. For many of these individuals, assistive technologies such as hearing aids could significantly improve their quality of life, yet only about one in four of those who could benefit from hearing aids has ever used them.To help address this important public health issue, the NIDCD joined the National Institute on Aging, Department of Veterans Affairs, Food and Drug Administration, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Department of Defense, and the Hearing Loss Association of America to cosponsor a consensus study on accessibility and affordability of hearing health care by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.Released June 2, 2016, the study results from a thorough analysis of the state of hearing health care for adults in the United States and puts forth 12 recommendations to direct hearing health care reform. These goals encourage agencies, organizations, and professionals to improve access to a wide range of services and technologies, to make those services and technologies more affordable for adults with hearing loss, and to increase transparency to and awareness among consumers and health providers in order to help consumers make more informed choices in managing hearing loss.In addition, the NIDCD supports innovative clinical and translational research initiatives to lay the foundation for improving accessible and affordable hearing health care, such as identifying barriers to hearing health care, assessing novel service delivery and screening models, and other approaches to improve access to and affordability of hearing health care for adults. These initiatives began in large part in response to research gaps identified during the 2009 NIDCD Workshop on Accessible and Affordable Hearing Health Care for Adults with Mild to Moderate Hearing Loss.As of January 2024, the NIDCD supports 17 active research projects on accessible and affordable hearing health care (AAHHC). This research covers a wide range of topics, examples of which include:Exploring and addressing barriers and incentives for adults seeking hearing health care.Seeking ways to predict, improve, and measure hearing health care outcomes.Working to develop safe and effective user-centered hearing aid fitting.Testing ways to promote hearing health care access and use in primary care.Investigating how to improve delivery of care in community settings to people with hearing loss.Reducing disparities in access to hearing health care.
    Last Updated Date:
      February 16, 2024
              Related Topics
    
      
            National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine Report by the Committee on Accessible and Affordable Hearing Health Care for Adults (June 2, 2016)
	NIDCD Director's Statement on National Academies’ Hearing Health Care Report
	Hearing Loss and Healthy Aging: An Institute of Medicine-National Research Council Workshop Summary (2014)
	Accessible and Affordable Hearing Health Care for Adults with Mild to Moderate Hearing Loss, guest editorial (Ear Hear February 2010)
	NIDCD Working Group on Accessible and Affordable Hearing Health Care for Adults with Mild to Moderate Hearing Loss (2009)
Other Related Resources
    
      
            Who Can I Turn to for Help with My Hearing Loss?
	Do You Need a Hearing Test?
	NIDCD Hearing Program
	Hearing Health Care Research Projects
	Hearing, Ear Infection, and Deafness Health Iinformation
	Prevalence Data Shows 1 in 6 Adults Reports Trouble Hearing
	Hearing Loss and Hearing Aid Use Infographic COVID-19
                              Accessibility
                              Contact Us
                              Free Publications
                              Freedom of Information Act
                              Privacy
                              Site Map
                              Syndication
                              Vulnerability Disclosure
                              Website Policies
                              Subscribe to NIDCD Email Updates 


    Follow Us:
                                                Facebook
                
                                                X

              31 Center Drive, MSC 2320, Bethesda, MD USA 20892-2320

              800-241-1044

                nidcdinfo@nidcd.nih.gov

          U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
                National Institutes of Health
                USA.gov—Government Made Easy