Progress report of a subsidy system for purchasing hearing aids for children with mild to moderate hearing impairment in Fukuoka City

Abstract

In 2013, Fukuoka City started a hearing aid purchase subsidy program for children with mild to moderate hearing loss. In the past 6 years, there have been 83 users throughout the system, and we herein report the circumstances. We evaluated 37 users underwent a newborn hearing screening. There were 29 cases in which the newborn hearing screening resulted in a referral, and 80% of children had started using a hearing aid by 3 years old. Eight cases had a newborn hearing screening result of ‘pass’. However, it was suggested that even if an infant passed their newborn hearing screening, they needed to be closely monitored for the subsequent onset of hearing loss. Based on these changes to the social situation, the current circumstances and the future of childcare for hearing-impaired children in Fukuoka City should be considered further.