The past 18 months have been nothing if not interesting for our profession. Between PCAST, the FDA, and the National Academy of Sciences, there have been multiple recommendations and suggestions regarding improving the access to, and affordability of, hearing care. More recently, the FTC announced that they too would be reviewing the delivery of hearing care, from their perspective as a consumer protection agency. And a bill has just been introduced in Congress that directs the FDA to develop rules for an over-the-counter hearing device. 

My dad suffered a stroke when I was in high school and part of his return to normalcy was working with a speech pathologist. I was fascinated by the process, and it led me to declare it as my major when I attended the University of Florida (UF) as an undergraduate. I was the first in my family to attend and graduate from college. 

The primary objective of local, state, and federal response to COVID-19 is to minimize mortality and mitigate explosive demand for acute health-care services related to COVID-19 complications, especially those that require care in intensive care units. 

Governmental responses have varied from statewide stay-at-home orders to more incremental approaches targeting restrictions in specific industries and locations. Certainly, many of these restrictions are warranted and necessary to achieve the desired public health outcomes. 

According to the National Institutes of Health’s Center National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences, many drugs approved for other uses already have been tested in humans, so detailed information is available on their pharmacology, formulation, and potential toxicity.