/EINPresswire.com/ -- WASHINGTON, DC--(Marketwired - June 06, 2016) - The Hearing Industries Association (HIA) supports national efforts to increase the accessibility and affordability of hearing health care in America, the association said today in response to a new report issued by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (the Academies), "Hearing Health Care for Adults: Priorities for Improving Access and Affordability."

"HIA has long-recognized hearing loss as a public health issue that must be addressed and made a national health priority," said HIA president, Carole Rogin.

HIA continues to believe that it is important to involve a hearing care professional in the purchase of hearing aids to ensure that a proper diagnosis of the cause and level of hearing loss is made. Tremendous advances in digital hearing aids have brought great benefits to people with hearing loss, but hearing aids still work best when individually programmed to appropriately amplify just those frequencies where a person has difficulty. Custom fittings, personalized programming, individualized adjustments and aural rehabilitation services all remain important for adequate and optimal hearing benefit.

"We hope that Congress, the medical community and insurers use the Academies' report as the basis for elevating the importance of hearing health as our health care system continues to evolve," Rogin continued. "The report brings together a number of recommendations that we within the hearing health community have been advocating for some time."

HIA appreciates the time and effort that went into the Academies' report and believes it will make a useful and important contribution to making hearing health a national priority.

About HIA

HIA, headquartered in Washington, DC, is the national trade association of manufacturers of hearing aids, implantable hearing devices, assistive listening devices, component parts and power sources for amplification devices.

For more than 40 years, the HIA-funded Better Hearing Institute (BHI) has worked tirelessly to increase public awareness of the importance of hearing health and treating hearing loss. For decades HIA, through BHI, has been conducting research and educational outreach so people with hearing loss can benefit from proper treatment.

Contact:
Fabia D'Arienzo
Media@BetterHearing.org
202.449.1100