Maryland Hearing Aid Dispensing Requirements

The profession of hearing aid dispenser is regulated at the state level and each state maintains its own standards for licensure or registration.

Initial Licensure Requirements

• Be of good moral character
• Be a graduate of an accreditated 2-year postsecondary program with a diploma or degree; and prior to taking the State licensing examination, provide proof of successful completion of the International Hearing Society Curriculum entitled "Distance Learning For Professionals in Hearing Health Sciences" or an equivalent course approved by the Board
• Obtain 6 months training under the supervision of a licensed hearing aid dispenser or licensed audiologist prior to taking the examination given by the Board
• Have passed a written and practical exam
• Demonstrate oral competency

Reciprocity

The Board shall accept current National Board Certification as a Hearing Instrument Specialist (BC-HIS) instead of the written and practical examinations for licensure, if the applicant:

• Is currently licensed in good standing in the state from which the applicant is applying; and
• Has practiced 3 years of the last 5 years before applying for a license in this state.

Continuing Education

A licensee applying for renewal of a license shall have successfully completed, within the 2-year licensing period, a total of 30 hours of Board-approved continuing education programs. Of the 20 hours, the licensee shall complete:

• 26 or more hours of instruction directly relating to the practice of fitting hearing aids, including the:
  • Science of hearing and hearing disorder;
  • Structure and function of hearing aids; and
  • Psychology of the hearing impaired; and
• Not more than 4 hours of instruction directly relating to managerial aspects of the practice of fitting hearing aids, including:
• Good business principles; and
• Customer management principles.

Audiologist Dispensing

Audiologists may dispense under an audiology license.

Board Composition

The Board of Audiologists, Hearing Aid Dispensers & Speech-Language Pathologists consists of 13 members. Three shall be licensed audiologists who have at least 5 years' paid work experience in audiology and are currently practicing audiology in the state; three shall be licensed speech-language pathologists who have at least 5 years' paid work experience in speech-language pathology and are currently practicing speech-language pathology in the state; two shall be physicians who shall be voting members of the Board, except on proposals that expand or restrict the practice of audiology as defined in § 2-101(q) of this title or that expand or restrict the practice of speech-language pathology as defined in § 2-101(r) of this title, and who: are licensed to practice medicine in the State; and hold a certificate of qualification from the American Board of Otolaryngology; and are currently practicing in the State; two shall be consumer members, 1 of whom shall be a consumer of services provided by an individual licensed by the Board; and three shall be licensed hearing aid dispensers who have at least 5 years' paid work experience in dispensing hearing aids and are currently practicing hearing aid dispensing in the State.

Facilities, Procedures and Instrumentation

The licensee or holder of a limited license who is engaged in the fitting and dispensing of hearing aids shall use appropriate testing procedures for a hearing aid fitting.

The licensee or holder of a limited license shall perform the following minimum testing procedures on each client seen:

• Air conduction tests at frequencies of 500-1,000-2,000-4,000 hertz, including appropriate masking, if the threshold of the second ear tested appears to differ by 30 decibels at any one frequency from those of the first ear; and
• Bone conduction tests at frequencies of 500-1,000-2,000-4,000 hertz, including appropriate masking, if there is a greater than 10 decibel difference in the bone readings of one ear over the other.

The use of speech stimuli is recommended before and during the fitting of the hearing aid.

The hearing aid dispenser shall maintain all test results as part of a client's record. Part or all of the tests may be performed by an otologist or clinical audiologist, but copies of the tests given may not be more than 6 months old. The hearing aid dispenser shall retain the test results in the client's record.

During the 2-year renewal, a hearing aid dispenser shall furnish evidence that each audiometer in use has been calibrated within the previous 12-month period.

Trial Period

30 days from date of delivery.

Mail Order

Mail order dispensing is not addressed in the law/regulations.

Resources

The information contained herein was collected and summarized annually. For detailed information on hearing aid dispenser requirements, contact the state board and visit these websites:

Board of Audiologists, Hearing Aid Dispensers & Speech-Language Pathologists Law

Hearing Aid Dispenser Regulations

Questions regarding this document? Call ASHA at 800-498-2071 and ask for the State Advocacy Team.