[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 153 (Wednesday, December 13, 2000)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E2178-E2179]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                THE NATIONAL CAMPAIGN FOR HEARING HEALTH

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. LOIS CAPPS

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, December 13, 2000

  Mrs. CAPPS. Mr. Speaker, today I support the National Campaign for 
Hearing Health. The campaign was launched a year and a half ago by the 
Deafness Research Foundation to put hearing health on the national 
agenda. With 28 million Americans suffering from hearing loss--from 
newborns to senior citizens--they are committed to promoting research, 
prevention, detection and intervention that will ensure that every 
American has the potential to lead a hearing life.
  Working with the campaign, I am pleased to announce the recent 
formation of the first-ever Congressional Hearing Health Caucus. The 
caucus is a bipartisan group of congressional Members committed to the 
study and support of hearing health issues. Caucus co-chairs include 
myself, Representatives Jim Walsh, Carolyn McCarthy, and Jim Ryun, who 
knows first-hand the impact of hearing loss. We are greatly interested 
in these vital issues that affect so many Americans' health and well-
being.
  While the increase in the availability of newborn hearing tests 
represents tremendous progress--we all realize that screening is just 
the first step. We must begin to look to the future and prepare for the 
time when 100 percent of newborns are screened at birth. We must ensure 
that, once a baby's hearing loss is detected, all parents have access 
to the appropriate interventions--be they digital hearing aids or 
cochlear implants--regardless of their economic status.
  Block grant funding provided to the states through last spring's 
Walsh bill--also known as the ``Newborn Infant Hearing Screening and 
Intervention Act'' is also expected to be a catalyst to advance newborn 
screening and intervention programs through the states. But it too is 
only a beginning.
  Once a baby's hearing impairment is identified, early intervention 
with either hearing aids or a cochlear implant is critical. Somewhere 
between 6 and 24 months, a ``hearing impaired child'' brain starts to 
shut down that part that processes speech and language. Every hour, two 
babies in America suffer irreversible damage to their brain's ability 
to process speech and language. Every hour, two babies cross that 24 
month critical window without the hearing assistance they need.
  The issue of funding is one that must be addressed. Today, the 
campaign is releasing its Medicaid Reimbursement State Report Card--to 
examine state-by-state the levels of reimbursement provided to low-
income families for cochlear implants--one of the new technologies 
available for hearing impaired children and adults.

[[Page E2179]]

  While Medicaid, a joint federal and state program designed to provide 
medical coverage for low-income families, does cover cochlear implants 
for eligible children in virtually all states reimbursement levels vary 
widely from state to state.
  These figures are troubling, especially since studies have shown that 
cochlear implants provide significant overall savings over the course 
of a lifetime in comparison to special education costs. It is clear 
that we have reached a point where our technology has outpaced our 
policy--leaving us with a situation that is clearly unacceptable--too 
many children denied life-altering hearing assistive technology due to 
lack of income or inadequate funding.
  And the problem does not exist under the Medicaid system alone. 
Private insurance reimbursement for cochlear implants has been found to 
be even more limited than Medicaid, despite the clear benefits of this 
technology. As precedent has shown, changes in Medicaid and Medicare 
can lead to changes in private insurance coverage as well. It is our 
hope that this data will lead to greater awareness of reimbursement 
discrepancies in Medicaid policy and will encourage changes that will 
in turn lead to changes in private insurance reimbursement policy.
  With thousands of potential implant candidates born each year in the 
United States, we simply cannot afford to ignore this issue any longer. 
All children in America should have access to this miracle of 
technology, regardless of their income, socio-economic status or place 
or residence. By improving Medicaid reimbursement for children, we can 
ensure that the most vulnerable in this country--low-income children--
can have the world of sound open to them.

                          ____________________