Newborn hearing assessment in 2010.

In 1993 the Rhode Island General Assembly mandated universal newborn hearing screening (UHNS) and required third-party payment for screenings (RI Public Law 23-23-13). Rhode Island was the first state in the nation to do so. Today 45 states and territories have statutes related to UNHS. A large body of research supports the effectiveness of newborn hearing screening in detecting hearing loss at an early age and reducing the age at which children with hearing loss are enrolled in Early Intervention (EI) programs. Current challenges include improving post-diagnosis follow-up; ensuring timely enrollment in EI; appropriately and effectively referring for amplification; and monitoring for later-onset hearing loss.