Senate Resolution No. 2155

BY: Senator PARKER

MEMORIALIZING Governor Andrew M. Cuomo to proclaim
May 29, 2017, as Hearing Aid Awareness Day in the
State of New York

WHEREAS, It is the custom of this Legislative Body to recognize
official days that are set aside to increase awareness of serious issues
that affect the lives of citizens of New York State; and

WHEREAS, It is the sense of this Legislative Body to memorialize
Governor Andrew M. Cuomo to proclaim May 29, 2017, as Hearing Aid
Awareness Day in the State of New York; and

WHEREAS, Hearing empowers us to live our lives more fully by
enabling us to participate more fully in our social, work, and family
lives; problems with hearing hinder this ability and can lead to
feelings of isolation and even depression; and

WHEREAS, May 29th, 1855, the first US patent for a hearing aid was
issued to Edward G. Hyde for his invention, the Acoustic Auricle; and

WHEREAS, Hearing aids are electrical devices designed to amplify
incoming sounds from the surrounding environment; hearing aids are
designed to assist hearing impaired individuals to process these
incoming sounds; there are over 38 million of these individuals in the
United States; and

WHEREAS, Hearing aids have been shown by studies to improve the
user's social, psychological, and physical sense of well-being; studies
have also shown that hearing aids improve individual's self-confidence,
concentration, independence, and job performance; and

WHEREAS, According to the recently released 37th Annual Report to
Congress on the Implementation of the Individuals with Disabilities
Education Act, 2015, speech or language impairments was the second most
prevalent disability category in 2013 (at 17.9%) for students ages 6-21
served under IDEA, Part B, due to hearing loss; and

WHEREAS, According to the Hearing Health Foundation, from 2000 to
2015, the number of Americans with hearing loss has doubled; globally
the number is up by 44%; 50 million people in America and 360 million
worldwide suffer from hearing loss including 3 in 5 veterans returning
from war; and

WHEREAS, Hearing aid prices can range from several hundred to
several thousands of dollars each; a recent survey published by the
Hearing Review found the purchase price of a single hearing aid is
generally anywhere from $800 to $4000 per ear; and

WHEREAS, It is imperative that there be greater awareness of this
serious health condition, and more must be done to increase activity at
the local, State and National levels; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED, That this Legislative Body pause in its deliberations to
memorialize Governor Andrew M. Cuomo to proclaim May 29, 2017, as
Hearing Aid Awareness Day in the State of New York; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a copy of this Resolution, suitably engrossed, be
transmitted to The Honorable Andrew M. Cuomo, Governor of the State of
New York.