![]() Since there can be significant amounts of background noise within many houses of worship, congregants can’t always rely on their hearing aids. While hearing solutions and hearing aids are generally helpful, many tend to amplify all sound in the immediate vicinity. Hearing Aids Alone Aren’t EnoughĪlthough many congregants who are deaf or hard of hearing may already have hearing aids, they alone are often not sufficient. State regulations for both California and Texas mandate that houses of worship provide assistive listening systems to their congregants. adults could benefit from using hearing aids.Īccording to the White House, provisions within President Biden’s proposed Build Back Better Act scheduled to take effect in 2023 would see an investment of $35 Billion from the US government in efforts to expand Medicare coverage to include hearing aids and services.Īlthough houses of worship are exempt from being required to provide assistive listening devices to those in need as outlined within the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), California and Texas are notable exceptions. population aged 18 and over, totaling roughly 37.5 million people, reports some level of hearing impairment as well. 2 to 3 out of every 1,000 children in the United States are born with a detectable level of hearing loss in one or both ears.Facts & Figures About Hearing Impairment and Assistive Listening Devices for Houses of Worshipīefore diving into solutions that houses of worship can deploy to improve audio accessibility for deaf or hard-of-hearing people, let’s look at some relevant data:Īccording to statistics provided by the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders: This will help parishioners who are in need of hearing solutions stay connected and inspired during religious services. As such, it is important for houses of worship to implement and enhance their audio accessibility to create a welcoming environment for all. For congregants who are deaf or hard-of-hearing, trying to discern what’s being communicated during services within these houses of worship can be exponentially more difficult. Combined, these characteristics result in acoustically imperfect environments that make audibility challenging for many. ![]() ![]() Tall ceilings, large spaces, religious ornamentations, and intricate architectural geometries are features commonly found in many houses of worship like churches and synagogues.
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