Adults with perceived mild to moderate hearing impairment will be able to buy hearing aids directly from stores, pharmacies and online retailers — no prescription or doctor’s appointment required — as soon as mid-October.

That’s thanks to a final rule issued by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on Tuesday and set to take effect in two months, following years of campaigning by lawmakers and advocates. It creates a new category of over-the-counter hearing aids, which the Biden administration says will make the devices more accessible and affordable for millions of Americans.

The new rule applies only to certain air-conduction hearing aids for people ages 18 and older who experience mild to moderate hearing impairment, meaning those that are intended for pediatric use or severe hearing impairment will remain prescription devices. It also does not apply to “personal sound amplification products,” consumer products that help people with normal hearing amplify sounds.

Read on at https://www.npr.org/2022/08/16/1117741695/over-the-counter-hearing-aids?emci=f6576b06-3f1e-ed11-bd6e-281878b83d8a&emdi=375f74e1-0e1f-ed11-bd6e-281878b83d8a&ceid=25914606.

A new device that helps deaf cyclists pinpoint the location of undetected passing traffic has been unveiled by a student from Brunel Design School.

Industrial designer Divine Okoroji, who was born deaf in one ear, said he hopes the device will give the hard of hearing more confidence on their bike.

“I never really used to cycle on the road,” said Okoroji, 22, from London. “I felt like I was always getting myself into positions where I was having near-misses, and that I’d probably be more confident and aware on the road if I could hear better.”

The slickly-designed device – SONEAR – uses ultrasonic sensors to monitor traffic, letting the user know when a vehicle is in their proximity by delivering small vibrations to the back of their head. As cars get closer, the tingling vibration increases, allowing the cyclist to ‘feel’ the car’s proximity to them.

Due to be exhibited at Made in Brunel at London’s Oxo Tower, the flagship design show for students from Brunel Design School, Okoroji hopes that his device can help deaf people participate in cycling’s ‘bike boom’ that first began with the COVID-19 pandemic.

Read on at https://www.brunel.ac.uk/news-and-events/news/articles/%EF%BB%BF-Head-mounted-device-allows-deaf-cyclists-to-‘feel’-surrounding-traffic.

Communication can be the difference between life and death in mountaineering. Climbers Scott Lehmann and Shayna Unger know that as well as anyone.

During their 2018 ascent of Argentina’s 22,837-foot Aconcagua, climbers Scott Lehmann, 33, and Shayna Unger, 30, carried pads of paper and pens in their pockets. As they stayed at Camp 2 at 18,000 feet and awaited good weather, the two wrote down questions on the pad about the forecast and about route conditions, and then showed their written inquiries to other climbers they met. It was a cumbersome means of communication, but it was the best way for Lehmann and Unger to obtain the information, since both climbers are deaf.

Other climbers proved to be unhelpful and indecisive in answering their inquiries—Lehmann and Unger believe the climbers didn’t want to be responsible for their safety on the peak. So, the two tried a different strategy. They awoke one morning at 4 A.M., unzipped the flap of their tent, and stared out into the darkness to see if other teams were preparing to push for the summit. Every few hours, they peeked their heads out of the tent, searching the camp for headlamps. Eventually, after two nights of staring into the dark pre-dawn sky, Lehmann and Unger saw lights flickering in a neighboring tent and then climbers emerging to move up the mountain. They knew it was time to climb.

Read on at https://www.outsideonline.com/outdoor-adventure/climbing/deaf-climbing-couple.