The
Federal
Communications
Commission
announced
that
going
forward,
all
mobile
handsets,
including
smartphones,
in
the
US
will
have
to
be
compatible
with
hearing
aids.
It’s
also
established
new
rules
around
volume
control
and
improved
product
labeling
so
people
with
hearing
aids
can
make
informed
buying
decisions.
The
gist
is
the
FCC
is
establishing
a
Bluetooth
pairing
requirement,
thereby
discouraging
smartphone
makers
from
using
proprietary
versions
that
could
limit
compatibility.
In
a
press
release,
it
says
that
doing
so
will
ensure
universal
connectivity
between
mobile
phones,
hearing
aids,
and
over-the-counter
hearing
aids.
While
a
Hearing
Aid
Compatibility
Task
Force
report
found
that
most
smartphones
do
support
hearing
aids,
this
helps
close
the
remaining
gap.
Smartphone
makers
will
also
have
to
meet
new
volume
control
benchmarks
that
will
allow
users
to
increase
volume
without
introducing
distortion.
The
goal
there
is
to
make
sure
everyone,
not
just
people
with
severe
hearing
loss,
can
have
clearer
audio.
Lastly,
companies
will
also
have
to
revise
product
labeling
to
include
information
about
hearing
aid
compatibility,
telecoil
or
Bluetooth
coupling
requirements,
and
conversation
gain
—
how
high
a
phone’s
volume
can
get
while
still
meeting
volume
control
requirements.
It’ll
take
a
bit
for
the
new
rules
to
fully
take
effect.
The
transition
period
will
be
24
months
for
handset
manufacturers,
30
months
for
nationwide
service
providers,
and
42
months
for
non-nationwide
providers.
Even
so,
this
dovetails
with
public
health
efforts
to
improve
hearing
aid
accessibility
in
recent
years.
Two
years
ago,
the
Food
and
Drug
Administration
introduced
OTC
hearing
aids
to
provide
cheaper
options
for
people
with
mild
to
moderate
hearing
loss.
(Originally posted by Victoria Song)
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