Virginia 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 at least 18 years of age
• Have completed high school or a high school equivalency course
• Have training and experience that covers subjects as they pertain to hearing aid fitting and the sale of hearing aids, accessories and services
• Have provided verification of completion of training and experience
• Have not been convicted or found guilty of any crime directly related to the practice of fitting and dealing in hearing aids, regardless of the manner of adjudication
• Be in good standing as a licensed hearing aid specialist in every jurisdiction where licensed
• Have disclosed his physical address
• A nonresident applicant for a license has filed and maintained with the department an irrevocable consent for the department to serve as service agent for all actions filed in any court in Virginia

Reciprocity

Every applicant for Virginia licensure through reciprocity who is currently licensed as a hearing aid specialist in good standing in another jurisdiction shall provide information upon application establishing that the requirements and standards under which the license was issued are substantially equivalent to and not conflicting with the provisions of this chapter.

Continuing Education

There are no requirements for continuing education in the law/regulations.

Audiologist Dispensing

Audiologists who dispense hearing aids must obtain a hearing aid dispenser license.

Board Composition

The Board for Hearing Aid Specialists shall consist of seven members, as follows: four licensed hearing aid specialists, of which at least one shall be licensed as an audiologist by the Board of Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology, one otolaryngologist, and two citizen members. One of the citizen members shall be a hearing aid user and the other a person who has a family member who is or has been a hearing aid user.

Facilities, Procedures and Instrumentation

The established requirements shall be:

• Air Conduction Tests A.N.S.I. standard frequencies of 500-1000-2000-4000 Hertz. Intermediate frequencies shall be tested if the threshold difference between octaves exceeds 15dB. Appropriate masking must be used if the difference between the two ears is 40 dB or more at any one frequency.
• Bone Conduction Tests are to be made on every client--A.N.S.I. standards at 500-1000-2000-4000 Hertz. Proper masking is to be applied if the air conduction and bone conduction readings for the test ear at any one frequency differ by 15 dB or if lateralization occurs.
• Speech testings shall be made before fittings and shall be recorded with type of test, method of presentation and the test results.
• Audiometers used in testing the hearing impaired must be in calibration. Calibration must be done once a year or more often, if needed. A certified copy of an electronic audiometer calibration shall be maintained for three years and shall be made available to the department upon request.

Trial Period

30 days from the 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:

Hearing Aid Specialist Law

Hearing Aid Specialist Regulations

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