National Early Hearing Detection and Intervention (EHDI) Conference

Abstract In March 1993 a National Institutes of Health Consensus Development Conference recommended that all newborns be screened for permanent hearing loss before being discharged from the birth hospital. Since that time, universal newborn hearing screening programs have been implemented throughout the United States with all 59 states and jurisdictions now receiving federal funding to assist with the operation and improvement of an Early Hearing Detection and Intervention (EHDI) program. The goal of these EHDI programs is to ensure that all newborns are screened for permanent hearing loss before one month of age, those not passing the screen receive a diagnostic audiological evaluation before three months of age, and those identified with permanent hearing loss are referred to an early intervention program before six months of age. These benchmarks are important because undetected hearing loss leads to significant delays in language, social and emotional development, and academic achievement for children. An important contributor to helping EHDI programs meet the EHDI benchmarks has been the annual National EHDI Conference, which has been held since 2001 and is now attended by more than 1,000 people each year. For almost 40 years, the National Center for Hearing Assessment and Management (NCHAM) at Utah State University has assisted EHDI stakeholders in expanding and improving EHDI programs, including the organization and management of the National EHDI Conference. The EHDI Act of 2022 (PL 117-241) reauthorized funding for EHDI programs through FY2027 and is administered by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The law directs the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to continue coordinating and advancing “a national program for the early identification and diagnosis of [deaf or hard of hearing (DHH)] newborns and infants”. The National EHDI Conference provides information, tools, and collaboration opportunities for those implementing the law, including state and federal EHDI program staff, researchers, providers of services, students, families, advocates, and others who help improve outcomes for children who are DHH. The National EHDI Conference seeks to address these matters through poster and podium presentations, plenary sessions, instructional sessions, networking, ancillary meetings, and other innovative methods while making the conference fully accessible for the attendees who are DHH by providing American Sign Language interpreting and real-time captioning services for all plenary, podium, and instructional sessions.