Sen. Menjivar pushes bill to require hearing-aid coverage for children; advocates cite developmental harms

Senator Menjivar introduced SB 331, a narrower version of earlier proposals to mandate hearing-aid coverage in large health plans and to shift costs away from a state-administered children's program, saying the enacted budget already assumes savings if the coverage shift occurs.

"We all have been hearing this conversation for the past 4 years," Menjivar said, urging colleagues to move the bill forward so that families do not bear the recurring $3,000–$6,000 cost of hearing aids as a child grows. Advocate Marie, who identified herself and described childhood hearing loss, said, "The day I got hearing aids changed my life" and estimated the bill would help about 8,000 children gain access. Dr. Dylan Chan, a pediatric otolaryngologist at UCSF, told the committee that "a pair of hearing aids costs $6,000 every few years" and that untreated pediatric hearing loss causes permanent speech, language and learning deficits.

The author and witnesses framed the measure as a response to an implementation problem: state-administered coverage has been slow to deliver devices, prompting decades of repeated legislative attempts. Supporters in the hearing room included the California Teachers Association, Children's Hospitals, Health Access California and disability-rights groups. Committee members praised the advocacy and expressed readiness to coauthor or give an "I" vote when the bill reaches consideration.

Next steps: the committee recorded motions to consider the measure when quorum and a formal vote are available. No final committee-level passage was recorded in the hearing transcript.