Rights of People who are Deaf and Hard of Hearing

There are important regulations that provide for specific services and access accommodations under the law. Each of these laws is summarized with links to definitions and additional information as well as websites for the agencies.

In addition there is a letter to parents from Stephanie Monroe, Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights at the United States Department of Education, regarding transition from high school to institutions of postsecondary education

Funding Considerations

Individual agencies have specific criteria and application procedures that must be followed when making a funding request. Always provide the necessary documentation that is requested. Frequently funding requests are denied and must be resubmitted. All teens and young adults should contact their local Vocational Rehabilitation office to meet with a counselor to discuss benefits for personal hearing instruments, assistive technology, college and job training as well as other potential services.

Securing Hearing Assistance Technology

Securing funding and appropriate hearing assistance technology can be a navigation nightmare often requiring substantial time of the professionals involved. Some considerations are:

      • Collaboration among audiologists It is critical for clinical and educational audiologists to
         collaborate with each other when recommending any new hearing technology. Keeping
         the lines of communication open between the audiologist, the school, the teen and the
         teen’s family will reduce the risk of incompatibility of technology, extra costs, confusion
         for the teen/family, and possible resistance to using the technology. After high school
         graduation, the clinical audiologist becomes the primary provider of hearing assistance
         technology since the public school system is no longer involved.

      • Device selection considerations Audiologists should work with teens/young adults to
         determine the most appropriate hearing assistance technology option(s) based on the
         individual hearing instrument(s) and the communication and listening environments
         encountered. In addition, the audiologists should assist them to acquire the
         information they need to advocate for their individual hearing technology needs and
         other accommodations that are necessary. Audiologists may also need to provide
         written recommendations to the entities that are involved with providing the
         accommodations. Some settings, such as colleges and universities who frequently
         serve young adults with hearing loss, may have their own hearing assistance
         technology for students. It is common to find older technology that has greater
         transmission interference and compatibility issues with the digital hearing instruments
         currently used by most users. Audiologists can work with these entities to help them
         learn about appropriate hearing assistance technologies and how to acquire them.


Some users may own their own FM system either as part of a hearing instrument package that includes FM or by purchasing it separately. In these situations the user can choose whether to use their own technology or the technology provided by the entity (e.g., college, job training, employer). ADA applies in either situation.