BILL NUMBER: AJR 34INTRODUCED BILL TEXT INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Carter FEBRUARY 17, 2010 Relative to hearing aids. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST AJR 34, as introduced, Carter. Hearing aids. This measure would respectfully urge the federal Food and Drug Administration to create a new over-the-counter hearing aid classification, as specified. Fiscal committee: no. WHEREAS, Senior citizens and low-income persons have the least amount of money available to purchase hearing aids; and WHEREAS, Although hearing disorders may afflict any person, senior citizens and low-income persons can least afford medical procedures to improve their hearing; and WHEREAS, The ability to hear is necessary to function socially and to be a contributing member of society; and WHEREAS, The person who has a hearing disorder is the best qualified to determine whether he or she should purchase an over-the-counter hearing aid; and WHEREAS, Hearing test units that allow senior citizens and others to determine which over-the-counter hearing aid is best for them can be installed in drugstores; and WHEREAS, Hearing aid manufacturers have stated, that over-the-counter hearing aids are safe for the customer; and WHEREAS, The cost of a high-quality hearing aid obtained through an audiologist or hearing aid dispenser typically exceeds six thousand dollars ($6,000); and WHEREAS, The electronics in a high-quality home entertainment system with the ability to receive and amplify audio frequencies and reproduce distortion-free sound at all frequencies and levels are more sophisticated than the electronics in a hearing aid and cost significantly less than a typical hearing aid that is sold through an audiologist or hearing aid dispenser; and WHEREAS, The manufacturing cost of high-quality integrated circuits for current hearing aids is less than twelve dollars and fifty-cents ($12.50); and WHEREAS, Accordingly, hearing aids that sell for two thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500) per ear can be produced with replaceable batteries and offered as over-the-counter products for approximately one hundred dollars ($100) per ear; now, therefore, be it Resolved by the Assembly and the Senate of the State of California, jointly, That the Legislature of the State of California respectfully urges the federal Food and Drug Administration to create a new over-the-counter hearing aid classification that grants over-the-counter sales, distribution, and use-status to one-size-fits-most hearing-aid devices that meet safety and efficacy requirements; and be it further Resolved, That the Chief Clerk of the Assembly transmit copies of this resolution to the federal Food and Drug Administration, and to the President of the United States, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, and each Senator and Representative from California in the Congress of the United States.