Hearing aid priority for war veterans

25 June 2007

War veterans will be able to go to the front of the queue for digital hearing aids on the NHS, say ministers.

Half a million people are currently waiting for a hearing aid, with some having waited more than two years. Around 100,000 ex-servicemen and women are thought to have hearing problems, but only one in 10 was previously prioritised for hearing aids.

In May a committee of MPs warned that NHS hearing aid services were unacceptable and appallingly patchy.

The problem began in 2000 when the government introduced the Modernising Hearing Aid Services programme to improve audiology services, mainly through the provision of digital aids. This lead to a surge in demand as people switched over from the old analogue models.

Until now, ex-servicemen and women were only prioritised if they met high government thresholds of hearing loss of 50 decibels in both ears, which meant they were eligible for pensions. Otherwise they faced long waits - some more than two years.

But, in a statement to the House of Commons, veterans minister Stephen Twigg said: "Priority treatment applies to all disablements that have been found to be due to service, irrespective of whether they result in a pension."

Source: BBC News
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