Virginia Administrative Code › Title 18 - PROFESSIONAL AND OCCUPATIONAL LICENSING › Agency 80 - BOARD FOR HEARING AID SPECIALISTS AND OPTICIANS › Chapter 20 - HEARING AID SPECIALISTS REGULATIONS › Part II - Entry Requirements › Section 18VAC80-20-30 - Basic qualifications for licensure

Current through Register Vol. 40, No. 24, July 15, 2024
A. Every applicant for a license shall
				  provide information on his application establishing that:
1. The applicant is at least 18 years of
				  age.
2. The applicant has
				  successfully completed high school or a high school equivalency
				  course.
3. The applicant has
				  training and experience that covers the following subjects as they pertain to
				  hearing aid fitting and the sale of hearing aids, accessories, and services:
a. Basic physics of sound;
b. Basic maintenance and repair of hearing
				  aids;
c. The anatomy and physiology
				  of the ear;
d. Introduction to
				  psychological aspects of hearing loss;
e. The function of hearing aids and
				  amplification;
f. Visible disorders
				  of the ear requiring medical referrals;
g. Practical tests utilized for selection or
				  modification of hearing aids;
h.
				  Pure tone audiometry, including air conduction, bone conduction, and related
				  tests;
i. Live voice or recorded
				  voice speech audiometry, including speech reception threshold testing and
				  speech discrimination testing;
j.
				  Masking when indicated;
k.
				  Recording and evaluating audiograms and speech audiometry to determine the
				  proper selection and adaptation of hearing aids;
l. Taking earmold impressions;
m. Proper earmold selection;
n. Adequate instruction in proper hearing aid
				  orientation;
o. Necessity of proper
				  procedures in after-fitting checkup; and
p. Availability of social service resources
				  and other special resources for the hearing impaired.
4. The applicant has provided one of the
				  following as verification of completion of training and experience as described
				  in subdivision 3 of this subsection:
a. A
				  statement on a form provided by the board signed by the licensed sponsor
				  certifying that the requirements have been met; or
b. A certified true copy of a transcript of
				  courses completed at an accredited college or university, or other notarized
				  documentation of completion of the required experience and training.
5. The applicant has not been
				  convicted or found guilty of any crime directly related to the practice of
				  fitting or dealing in hearing aids, regardless of the manner of adjudication,
				  in any jurisdiction of the United States. Except for misdemeanor marijuana
				  convictions and misdemeanor convictions that occurred five or more years prior
				  to the date of application, with no subsequent convictions, all criminal
				  convictions shall be considered as part of the totality of the circumstances of
				  each applicant. The applicant review of prior convictions shall be subject to
				  the requirements of §
											54.1-204
				  of the Code of Virginia. Any plea of nolo contendere shall be considered a
				  conviction for purposes of this subdivision. The record of a conviction
				  authenticated in such form as to be admissible in evidence under the laws of
				  the jurisdiction where convicted shall be admissible as prima facie evidence of
				  such conviction or guilt.
6. The
				  applicant is in good standing as a licensed hearing aid specialist in every
				  jurisdiction where licensed. The applicant must disclose if he has had a
				  license as a hearing aid specialist that was suspended, revoked, or surrendered
				  in connection with a disciplinary action or that has been the subject of
				  discipline in any jurisdiction prior to applying for licensure in Virginia. At
				  the time of application for licensure, the applicant must also disclose any
				  disciplinary action taken in another jurisdiction in connection with the
				  applicant's practice as a hearing aid specialist. The applicant must also
				  disclose whether he has been previously licensed in Virginia as a hearing aid
				  specialist.
7. The applicant has
				  disclosed his physical address. A post office box is not acceptable.
8. The nonresident applicant for a license
				  has filed and maintained with the department an irrevocable consent for the
				  department to serve as service agent for all actions filed in any court in
				  Virginia.
9. The applicant has
				  submitted the required application with the proper fee as referenced in
				  18VAC80-20-70 and
				  signed, as part of the application, a statement that the applicant has read and
				  understands Chapter 15 (§
											54.1-1500 et seq.) of
				  Title 54.1 of the Code of Virginia and this chapter.