Your Help is Needed!

We believe that all children, regardless of a family's income, should have the right to hear, learn, and reach their fullest potential.

There are currently 20 states, including Oregon, that require health plans to cover some costs of hearing aids for children.

Image courtesy  anankkml: FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Ø       Early identification of hearing loss and treatment in newborns has a dramatic and positive impact on speech development, language development, and learning. Even a six-month delay in treatment of newborns can make the difference between a special education and a mainstream education. According to a 1993 study by the Marion Downs Center, children who do not require special education save a school system as much as $348,000 during a 12-year education. Source: Downs, MP, Universal Newborn Hearing Screening: The Colorado Study, International Journal of Pediatric Otorhinolaryngology, 1995, page 32.

Ø      According to the CDC, during the 1999–2000 school year, the total cost in the United States for special education programs for children who were deaf or hard of hearing was $652 million, or $11,006 per child. In 2012, that figure is undoubtedly MUCH higher.

Ø      Children who do not receive early intervention cost schools an additional $420,000 and are faced with overall lifetime costs of $1 million in special education, lost wages, and health complications, according to a 1995 study published in the International Journal of Pediatric Otorhinolaryngology. The Department of Education indicates that over 70,000 students, ages 6-21, received special education services in 2002 alone, due to their hearing loss

We strongly urge you to please help support our efforts and ask that you sign our online petition and pass it along to your friends and neighbors.

Your support of children with hearing loss is truly appreciated!

http://www.petitionbuzz.com/petitions/wchaa