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The Hearing
Loss Association of Michigan (formerly Michigan SHHH)
has adopted the following resolution:
WHEREAS, the number of people in Michigan with a hearing
loss is fast growing due to an increase in population and
the accumulated effects of toxic noise, and
WHEREAS, people with hearing loss require technology in addition
to hearing aids and cochlear implants to hear in many environments,
and
WHEREAS, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the
Michigan's Persons with Disabilities Civil Rights (MPDCR)
prohibit public places from denying a person with a disability
the full and equal enjoyment of goods, services, facilities,
privileges, advantages, and accommodations, and
WHEREAS, public places as defined by ADA and MPDCR include,
but are not limited to: hotels, convention centers, theatres,
doctors and law offices, pharmacies, retail stores, museums,
libraries, parks, state and local government agencies, employers,
and
WHEREAS, when public places comply with these acts, they generally
do so by providing headsets that are not appropriate for hearing
aid and cochlear implant users, and
WHEREAS, there are many new and emerging technologies such
as telecoils, plug in or built in FM receivers, and Bluetooth
that benefit people with hearing loss, and
WHEREAS, these technologies work best when sound is broadcast
directly through hearing aids and cochlear implants so equipped,
THEREFORE, on behalf of Michigan's hard of hearing persons,
HLA-MI recommends that Michigan's public places, as defined
by ADA and MPDCR, and where sound is broadcast, install assistive
listening systems that broadcast directly through hearing
aids and cochlear implants. We further recommend that, as
mandated by the United States Access Board, such newly installed
systems also provide appropriate receiver attachments for
those persons without suitably equipped hearing aids and cochlear
implants.
October 15, 2006
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