There are approximately 750,000 people in New York City who have a hearing loss. Of those people, approximately 300,000 are over 65. Of the 88 senior centers in Manhattan that were surveyed in 1998, none of them were fully accessible for people with hearing loss. Under the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, both places of public accommodation and state and local government programs, activities and services must be accessible to all people with disabilities. About 1 in 4 over the age of 65 has a hearing loss.
Hearing aids are the third most widely used assistive devices following eye glasses and canes.
Medicare does not cover the cost of hearing aids. People with untreated hearing loss are less likely to participate in organized social activities compared to those who wear hearing aids. The League for the Hard of Hearing has provided the Department for the Aging with testimony over the last five years, and has attempted to educate the Department since 1981 regarding communication access for people with hearing loss, yet the Department has failed to provide for the needs of this community.