Barriers to Receiving Necessary Hearing Care Among US Children
Brooke M Su-Velez1, Habib Khoury2, Shaghauyegh S Azar2
1Department of Head and Neck Surgery, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Los Angeles, California, USA.
Insights
Over 200,000 US children annually lack necessary hearing care, including nearly 60,000 deaf or hard-of-hearing children. Key barriers include cost, service availability, and appointment difficulties.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Health
- Audiology
- Public Health
Background:
- Hearing impairment affects a significant number of children.
- Access to timely and appropriate hearing care is crucial for child development.
- Existing data on unmet pediatric hearing care needs and barriers is limited.
Purpose of the Study:
- To determine the national prevalence of unmet pediatric hearing care needs.
- To identify specific barriers hindering access to pediatric hearing healthcare.
- To inform policy and interventions for improving children's hearing health.
Main Methods:
- Cross-sectional study utilizing a nationally representative dataset.
- Analysis of parent-reported data from the 2016 and 2017 National Survey of Children's Health.
- Examination of children's hearing status, access to care, and perceived barriers.
Main Results:
- Approximately 206,200 US children annually require but do not receive hearing care.
- Of 934,000 children with deafness or hearing problems, 60,000 did not receive necessary care.
- Barriers included lack of service eligibility (57.5%), unavailability (45.4%), appointment difficulties (53.7%), and cost (53.5%).
Conclusions:
- Over 200,000 children annually face unmet hearing care needs, impacting over 60,000 deaf or hard-of-hearing children.
- Significant barriers to pediatric hearing healthcare include cost, service eligibility, availability, and appointment scheduling.
- Addressing these barriers is essential to improve hearing health outcomes for all children.
Objective:
We aim to clarify the national scope of unmet pediatric hearing care needs and identify specific barriers to hearing care.
Study Design:
Cross-sectional study of a nationally representative data set.
Setting:
This study is based on the combined 2016 and 2017 National Survey of Children's Health. This survey covers the physical and emotional health, access to care, and social context of US children and adolescents aged 0 to 17 years.
Methods:
Analysis of parent-reported responses of children's hearing status, access to care, and perceived barriers.
Results:
Overall, 0.3% (n = 206,200) of US children surveyed reported needing hearing care, which was not received. A further 1.3% (n = 934,000) reported deafness or problems with hearing, and of these, 6.4% (n = 60,000) reported not receiving necessary hearing care. Rates of insurance coverage between children with deafness/hearing problems and the general population were similar (91.7% vs 93.9%); however, deaf or hard-of-hearing children with unmet hearing care needs were more likely to be from non-White backgrounds (P = .009) and to lack health insurance coverage (P = .001). Rates of unfulfilled hearing care by reason were as follows: 57.5% without eligibility for the service, 45.4% reporting the service was not available in their area, 53.7% with difficulty obtaining an appointment, and 53.5% reporting issues with cost.
Conclusion:
Over 200,000 children annually do not receive necessary hearing-related care despite high rates of insurance coverage, and nearly 60,000 of these children are deaf or hard of hearing. Cost, eligibility for and distribution of services, and timely appointments are the primary barriers to hearing health care.
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