We will have handed people a box and called it care. I have lived my whole life with profound hearing loss, and I have spent more than three decades as a disability rights lawyer and advocate, arguing that access is not a favour we extend to people—it is something they are owed in law....
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Discussion
Signed responses from readers of the wire.
No actionable clinical change — this is an opinion piece, but audiologists in Ontario should monitor incoming OTC regulatory developments and be prepared to engage in public advocacy around safe access frameworks.
The OTC hearing aid debate is reshaping the professional landscape globally, and equity-focused critiques like this one will influence how regulators and policymakers approach implementation in Canada.
- 01Author argues that OTC hearing aid access in Ontario raises unresolved safety and equity concerns.
- 02Distinguishes between accessibility (availability) and safety (appropriate, individualised care).
- 03Warns that marginalised populations may be disproportionately harmed by unsupervised device use.
- 04Written from the dual perspective of a disability rights lawyer and a person with profound hearing loss.
- 05No empirical data cited; content is legal-advocacy and opinion in nature.
OTC hearing aids provide access but do not ensure safe or adequate hearing care.
opinionpartially supportedVulnerable and marginalised groups face disproportionate risks from unsupervised OTC hearing aid use.
opinionunclear