Longshore and Harbor Workers' Compensation Act: Quality Standards for Hearing Loss Testing

Summary

The Longshore and Harbor Workers' Compensation Act (LHWCA) provides compensation to employees for disability or death from injury arising out of and in the course of employment. Hearing loss claims constitute a significant portion of LHWCA claims, and determining the extent of hearing loss necessarily entails evaluating medical test results. The program statutes and regulations currently reference audiograms as the primary testing method and incorporate the American Medical Association's Guides to the Evaluation of Permanent Impairment for measuring and calculating hearing impairment. The Office of Workers' Compensation Programs (OWCP) is considering updating the quality standards for hearing loss testing to better reflect current medical technology and practice, particularly the potential use of objective testing methods. This request for information seeks the public's input on the comparative reliability and validity of audiograms versus objective tests such as Auditory Brainstem Response (ABR), Auditory Steady State Response (ASSR), and Otoacoustic Emissions (OAE) and others; current standards for administering these tests; and criteria used to evaluate hearing impairment.