The United States has always placed a high premium on education. From the advent of free public schools dating to the colonial era, to land grant colleges in the 19th century and modern programs designed to encourage education today, America has always understood that education is the cornerstone of a vibrant and prosperous civil society.
This emphasis on education is also reflected in our tax code, with a variety of deductions and credits that incentivize more and better education. There are education tax deductionsfor interest on student loans, 529 college savings plans and work-related education. There are also tax credits for tuition and fees at colleges and universities, and for continuing adult education.
{mosads}However, no amount of incentivizing education can help those students who are unable to reach their academic potential because of hearing loss. Nearly 15-percent of school age children suffer some degree of hearing loss that adversely impacts, “the development of communication and behavioral skills that affect educational experience and relationships with other people,” according to research published in the Journal of The American Medical Association.
What we have a disconnect; tax policies to encourage education are essentially meaningless to families of students who cannot achieve academic success because of hearing loss. But there is a way to fix this inconsistency in policy through the Hearing Aid Assistance Tax Credit Act, which recognizes the need to help families and children suffering from hearing loss with a $500 tax credit for a hearing aid.
The negative effects of hearing loss begin early in life, making it difficult for infants and toddlers to hear speech and develop early speaking skills. These obstacles worsen over time, creating more significant problems when a child starts school. According to researchers at the University of Arizona and Arizona State University, “learning problems related to hearing loss typically manifest as poor performance in language-based subjects, class tests, class participation, and verbal interaction with peers and teachers.”
Too often, children who perform poorly in school do not perform as well when they mature into working adults. The unfortunate correlation between hearing loss and personal income is reflected in research conducted at the Harvard Medical School which determined in 2012 that people suffering from hearing loss, “are more likely to be unemployed and on average earn significantly less wage income than adults without hearing loss.”
The data showed that people with hearing loss earned $7,791 less per year in mean wages than those with normal hearing. The prospect of greater earning power for people able to obtain a hearing aid brings another level of common sense to the debate and simple math makes a compelling case for passing the tax credit. Were we to close this income gap through better hearing and subject the additional $7,791 in personal income to the 15 percent federal income tax rate, it would increase tax revenue by $1,168, a figure that exceeds the entire tax credit for a person needing a pair of hearing aids.
This tax credit is not limited to school-aged children. It provides tax relief to people of all ages who need hearing aids, and the benefits to society at large extend beyond those conferred exclusively to students. But many of the key benefits of better hearing circle back to education and doing all we can to make sure hard-of-hearing children reach their full potential in the classroom. A tax credit for hearing aids can help make this happen.
The hearing aid tax credit is not a new idea. It dates back to 2004 and has been introduced in successive Congresses only to die a slow legislative death. The question is ‘why?’ The benefits of giving children with hearing loss the same educational opportunities as other children are abundant. It’s time to stop ignoring hearing loss and pass the Hearing Aid Assistance Tax Credit Act.
Fabry is vice president of audiology for Starkey Hearing Technologies in Eden Prairie, Minnesota.