Chapter 4747 | Hearing Aid Dealers

Section 4747.01 | Hearing aid dealer definitions.

• Effective: November 25, 1969
• Latest Legislation: Senate Bill 61 - 108th General Assembly

As used in sections 4747.01 to 4747.15, inclusive, of the Revised Code:

(A) "Hearing aid" means any wearable instrument or device designed or offered for the purpose of aiding or compensating for impaired human hearing, including all attachments, accessories, and parts thereof, except batteries and cords.

(B) "Practice of dealing in" or "fitting of" hearing aids means the sale of a hearing aid, and the measurement and testing of human hearing by means of an audiometer or by any other means for the purpose of selecting, adapting, and selling a hearing aid to any person, and includes the making of impressions for earmolds.

(C) "Hearing aid dealer" and "hearing aid fitter" mean any person engaged in the practice of dealing in or fitting of hearing aids.

(D) "Trainee" means any person training to become a licensed hearing aid dealer or fitter.

(E) "Sell" or "sale" means the retail transfer of title or of the right to use by lease, bailment, or any other contract, but excludes a wholesale sale to a distributor or dealer.

Section 4747.02 | Unlicensed practice.

• Effective: November 25, 1969
• Latest Legislation: Senate Bill 61 - 108th General Assembly

No person, firm, partnership, association, or corporation shall, on or after July 1, 1970, engage in the sale, practice of dealing in or fitting of hearing aids, advertise or assume such practice, or engage in training to become a licensed hearing aid dealer or fitter without first being licensed as provided in this chapter.

Section 4747.04 | Powers and duties of board.

• Effective: December 29, 2023
• Latest Legislation: Senate Bill 131 - 134th General Assembly

(A) The state speech and hearing professionals board shall:

(1) Establish the nature and scope of qualifying examinations in accordance with section 4747.08 of the Revised Code;

(2) Determine whether persons holding similar valid licenses from other jurisdictions other than other states shall be required to take and successfully pass the appropriate qualifying examination as a condition for licensing in this state;

(3) Review complaints and conduct investigations in accordance with section 4747.13 of the Revised Code and hold any hearings that are necessary to carry out this chapter;

(4) Determine and specify the length of time each license that is suspended or revoked shall remain suspended or revoked;

(5) Deposit all payments collected under this chapter into the state treasury to the credit of the occupational licensing and regulatory fund created in section 4743.05 of the Revised Code;

(6) Establish a list of disqualifying offenses for licensure as a hearing aid dealer or fitter, or for a hearing aid dealer or fitter trainee permit, pursuant to sections 9.79, 4747.05, 4747.10, 4747.12, and 4776.10 of the Revised Code.

(B) The board shall adopt reasonable rules, in accordance with Chapter 119. of the Revised Code, necessary for the administration of this chapter. The board shall include all of the following in those rules:

(1) The amount of any fees required under this chapter;

(2) The information to be included in a hearing aid receipt provided by a licensed hearing aid dealer or fitter to a person under section 4747.09 of the Revised Code;

(3) The amount of time a licensed hearing aid dealer or fitter or trainee permit holder has to provide the notice of a change in address or addresses required under section 4747.11 of the Revised Code and any other requirements relating to the notice;

(4) Any additional conduct for which the board may discipline a licensee or permit holder under section 4747.12 of the Revised Code.

(C) Nothing in this section shall be interpreted as granting to the board the right to restrict advertising which is not false or misleading, or to prohibit or in any way restrict a hearing aid dealer or fitter from renting or leasing space from any person, firm or corporation in a mercantile establishment for the purpose of using such space for the lawful sale of hearing aids or to prohibit a mercantile establishment from selling hearing aids if the sale would be otherwise lawful under this chapter.

Last updated December 29, 2023 at 6:06 AM

Section 4747.05 | Application for license.

• Effective: December 29, 2023
• Latest Legislation: Senate Bill 131 - 134th General Assembly

(A)(1) The state speech and hearing professionals board shall issue to each applicant, within sixty days of receipt of a properly completed application and payment of an application fee set by the board in rules adopted under section 4747.04 of the Revised Code, a hearing aid dealer's or fitter's license if the applicant:

(a) In the case of an individual, the individual is at least eighteen years of age, is free of contagious or infectious disease, and has successfully passed a qualifying examination specified and administered by the board.

(b) In the case of a firm, partnership, association, or corporation, the application, in addition to such information as the board requires, is accompanied by an application for a license for each person, whether owner or employee, of the firm, partnership, association, or corporation, who engages in dealing in or fitting of hearing aids, or contains a statement that such applications are submitted separately. No firm, partnership, association, or corporation licensed pursuant to this chapter shall permit any unlicensed person to sell or fit hearing aids.

(2) The board shall issue a hearing aid dealer's or fitter's license in accordance with Chapter 4796. of the Revised Code to an applicant if either of the following applies:

(a) The applicant holds a license in another state.

(b) The applicant has satisfactory work experience, a government certification, or a private certification as described in that chapter as a hearing aid dealer or fitter in a state that does not issue that license.

(B)(1) Subject to division (B)(3) of this section, the board shall not adopt or enforce any rule that precludes an individual from renewing a license issued under this chapter due to any past criminal activity, unless the individual has committed a crime of moral turpitude or a disqualifying offense as those terms are defined in section 4776.10 of the Revised Code. The board shall comply with Chapter 119. of the Revised Code when denying an individual a license renewal.

(2) The board may refuse to issue a license to an applicant because of a conviction of or plea of guilty to an offense if the refusal is in accordance with section 9.79 of the Revised Code.

(3) In considering a renewal of an individual's license, the board shall not consider any conviction or plea of guilty prior to the initial licensing. However, the board may consider a conviction or plea of guilty if it occurred after the individual was initially licensed, or after the most recent license renewal.

(4) The board may grant an individual a conditional license that lasts for one year. After the one-year period has expired, the license is no longer considered conditional, and the individual shall be considered fully licensed.

(C)(1) Except as provided in division (C)(2) of this section, each license issued is valid from the date of issuance until the thirty-first day of December of the even-numbered year that follows the date of issuance.

(2) A license issued less than one hundred days before the thirty-first day of December of an even-numbered year is valid from the date of issuance until the thirty-first day of December of the even-numbered year that follows the thirty-first day of December immediately after the date of issuance.

Last updated December 29, 2023 at 6:05 AM

Section 4747.051 | Criminal records check.

• Effective: October 9, 2021
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 263 - 133rd General Assembly

(A) As used in this section, "license" and "applicant for an initial license" have the same meanings as in section 4776.01 of the Revised Code, except that "license" as used in both of those terms refers to the types of authorizations otherwise issued or conferred under this chapter.

(B) In addition to any other eligibility requirement set forth in this chapter, each applicant for an initial license shall comply with sections 4776.01 to 4776.04 of the Revised Code. The state speech and hearing professionals board shall not grant a license to an applicant for an initial license unless the applicant complies with sections 4776.01 to 4776.04 of the Revised Code.

Last updated October 9, 2021 at 5:00 AM

Section 4747.06 | License renewal - continuing education.

• Effective: April 5, 2019
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 420 - 132nd General Assembly

(A) (1) Except as provided in division (A)(2) of this section and section 4747.12 of the Revised Code, a hearing aid dealer's or fitter's license issued or renewed by the state speech and hearing professionals board under this chapter shall be renewed biennially not later than the thirty-first day of December in each even-numbered year and in accordance with the standard renewal procedure specified in Chapter 4745. of the Revised Code. The board shall issue to each applicant, on receipt of a renewal application, proof of completion of the continuing education required by division (B) of this section, payment of a renewal fee, and, if applicable, a late fee established by the board in rules adopted under section 4747.04 of the Revised Code, a renewed hearing aid dealer's or fitter's license. No person who applies for renewal of a hearing aid dealer's or fitter's license that has expired shall be required to take any examination as a condition of renewal provided application for renewal is made within two years of the date such license expired.

(2) A person issued a license described in division (C)(2) of section 4747.05 of the Revised Code shall renew that license in accordance with the standard renewal procedure before it expires as described in that division. After the first renewal, the license shall be renewed in accordance with division (A)(1) of this section.

(B) Each person engaged in the practice of dealing in or fitting of hearing aids who holds a valid hearing aid dealer's or fitter's license shall complete not less than twenty hours of continuing professional education approved by the board during each two-year period. On a form provided by the board, the person shall certify to the board, at the time of license renewal pursuant to division (A) of this section, that the person has completed continuing education in compliance with this division and shall submit any additional information required by rule of the board regarding the continuing education. The board shall adopt rules in accordance with Chapter 119. of the Revised Code establishing the standards continuing education programs must meet to obtain board approval and continuing education reporting requirements.

Continuing education may be applied to meet the requirement of this division if it is provided or certified by any of the following:

(1) The international hearing society;

(2) The American speech-language hearing association;

(3) The American academy of audiology.

The board may excuse persons licensed under this chapter, as a group or as individuals, from all or any part of the requirements of this division because of an unusual circumstance, emergency, or special hardship.

Section 4747.07 | Display of license - duplicate copies of license.

• Effective: April 5, 2019
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 420 - 132nd General Assembly

Each person who holds a hearing aid dealer's or fitter's license and engages in the practice of dealing in and fitting of hearing aids shall display such license in a conspicuous place in the person's office or place of business at all times. Each person who maintains more than one office or place of business shall post a duplicate copy of the license at each location. The state speech and hearing professionals board shall issue duplicate copies of a license upon request by the license holder and receipt of any fee established by the board in rules adopted under section 4747.04 of the Revised Code.

Section 4747.08 | Qualifying examination.

• Effective: April 5, 2019
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 420 - 132nd General Assembly

No person shall be issued a hearing aid dealer's or fitter's license unless such person has successfully taken and passed a qualifying examination. The qualifying examination shall be a thorough testing of knowledge required for the proper selecting, fitting, and sale of hearing aids, but shall not be such that a medical or surgical education is required for successful completion. It shall consist of written and practical portions which shall include, but not be limited to, the following areas:

(A) Basic physics of sound;

(B) The anatomy and physiology of the human ear;

(C) The function and purpose of hearing aids;

(D) Pure tone audiometry, including air conduction and bone conduction testing;

(E) Live voice or recorded voice speech audiometry, including speech reception threshold testing and speech discrimination testing;

(F) Masking techniques;

(G) Recording and evaluation of audiograms and speech audiometry to determine proper selection and adaption of hearing aids;

(H) Earmold impression techniques.

The state speech and hearing professionals board shall establish the nature and scope of qualifying examinations that the board determines necessary under this chapter. It shall administer qualifying examinations and shall designate the time, place, and date the examinations are held. The board shall also furnish all materials and equipment necessary for the conducting of qualifying examinations.

Test materials, examinations, answer keys, or evaluation tools used in a qualifying examination under this chapter, whether administered by the board or by a private or government entity pursuant to a contract, are not public records under section 149.43 of the Revised Code.

Section 4747.09 | Hearing aid receipt; recommendation for examination of persons under sixteen.

• Effective: April 5, 2019
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 420 - 132nd General Assembly

(A) Each licensed hearing aid dealer or fitter shall furnish each person supplied with a hearing aid a receipt that complies with rules adopted by the state speech and hearing professionals board under section 4747.04 of the Revised Code.

(B) Each licensed hearing aid dealer or fitter shall, when dealing with a child sixteen years of age or less, ascertain whether such child has been examined by an otolaryngologist prior to being fitted for a hearing aid. If the licensee determines that such examination has not taken place, the licensee shall recommend to the person legally responsible for the custody of such child that such examination take place and shall so state on a waiver to be specified by the board.

Section 4747.10 | Permit qualifications.

• Effective: December 29, 2023
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 33 - 135th General Assembly

(A)(1) Each person currently engaged in training to become a licensed hearing aid dealer or fitter shall apply to the state speech and hearing professionals board for a hearing aid dealer's and fitter's trainee permit. The board shall issue to each applicant within thirty days of receipt of a properly completed application and payment of an application fee set by the board in rules adopted under section 4747.04 of the Revised Code, a trainee permit if such applicant meets all of the following criteria:

(a) Is at least eighteen years of age;

(b) Is the holder of a diploma from an accredited high school or a certificate of high school equivalence issued under section 3301.80 of the Revised Code;

(c) Is free of contagious or infectious disease.

(2) The board shall issue a hearing aid dealer's and fitter's trainee permit in accordance with Chapter 4796. of the Revised Code to an applicant if either of the following applies:

(a) The applicant holds a permit or license in another state.

(b) The applicant has satisfactory work experience, a government certification, or a private certification as described in that chapter as a hearing aid dealer and fitter trainee in a state that does not issue that permit or license.

(B) The board shall not deny a trainee permit issued under this section to any individual based on the individual's past criminal history unless the denial is in accordance with section 9.79 of the Revised Code.

In considering a renewal of an individual's trainee permit, the board shall not consider any conviction or plea of guilty prior to the issuance of the initial trainee permit. However, the board may consider a conviction or plea of guilty if it occurred after the individual was initially granted the trainee permit, or after the most recent trainee permit renewal. The board shall comply with Chapter 119. of the Revised Code when denying an individual for a trainee permit or renewal. Additionally, the board may grant an individual a conditional trainee permit that lasts for one year. After the one-year period has expired, the permit is no longer considered conditional, and the individual shall be considered to be granted a full trainee permit.

(C) Each trainee permit issued by the board expires one year from the date it was first issued, and may be renewed once if the trainee has not successfully completed the qualifying requirements for licensing as a hearing aid dealer or fitter before the expiration date of such permit. The board shall issue a renewed permit to each applicant upon receipt of a properly completed application and payment of a renewal fee set by the board in rules adopted under section 4747.04 of the Revised Code. No person holding a trainee permit shall engage in the practice of dealing in or fitting of hearing aids except while under supervision by a licensed hearing aid dealer or fitter.

Last updated December 29, 2023 at 5:04 AM

Section 4747.11 | Notice of change of address.

• Effective: April 5, 2019
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 420 - 132nd General Assembly

Each person who holds a hearing aid dealer's or fitter's license or trainee permit shall notify the state speech and hearing professionals board in writing of the place or places where the person engages or intends to engage in the practice of dealing in and fitting of hearing aids, and shall notify the board in writing of any change in such address or addresses in accordance with rules the board adopts under section 4747.04 of the Revised Code.

Section 4747.12 | Disciplinary actions.

• Effective: April 6, 2023
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 263 (GA 133), House Bill 281 (GA 134)

(A) In accordance with Chapter 119. of the Revised Code, the state speech and hearing professionals board may revoke, suspend, place on probation, or, except as provided in division (B) of this section, refuse to issue or renew a license or permit or reprimand a licensee or permit holder if the person who holds such license or permit:

(1) Is convicted of a disqualifying offense or a crime of moral turpitude as those terms are defined in section 4776.10 of the Revised Code;

(2) Procured a license or permit by fraud or deceit practiced upon the board;

(3) Obtained any fee or made any sale of a hearing aid by fraud or misrepresentation;

(4) Used or caused or promoted the use of any advertising matter, promotional literature, testimonial, guarantee, warranty, label, brand, insignia, or any other representation, however disseminated or published, which is misleading, deceptive, or untruthful;

(5) Advertised a particular model or type of hearing aid for sale when purchasers or prospective purchasers responding to the advertisement cannot purchase the specified model or type of hearing aid;

(6) Represented or advertised that the service or advice of a person licensed to practice medicine will be used or made available in the selection, fitting, adjustment, maintenance, or repair of hearing aids when such is not true, or using the words "doctor," "clinic," or similar words, abbreviations, or symbols which connote the medical profession when such use is not accurate;

(7) Advertised a manufacturer's product or used a manufacturer's name or trademark in a manner which suggested the existence of a relationship with the manufacturer which did not or does not exist;

(8) Fitted or sold, or attempted to fit or sell, a hearing aid to a person without first utilizing the appropriate procedures and instruments required for proper fitting of hearing aids;

(9) Engaged in the fitting and sale of hearing aids under a false name or an alias;

(10) Engaged in the practice of dealing in or fitting of hearing aids while having a contagious or infectious disease;

(11) Was found by the board to be guilty of gross incompetence or negligence in the fitting or sale of hearing aids;

(12) Permitted another person to use the licensee's license;

(13) Violate the code of ethical practice adopted under section 4744.50 of the Revised Code;

(14) Made or filed a false report or record in the sale or dispensing of a hearing aid;

(15) Aided or abetted the unlicensed sale, fitting, or dispensing of a hearing aid;

(16) Committed an act of dishonorable, immoral, or unprofessional conduct while engaging in the sale or practice of dealing in or fitting of hearing aids;

(17) Engaged in illegal, incompetent, or habitually negligent practice;

(18) Provided professional services while mentally incompetent or under the influence of alcohol or while using any narcotic or controlled substance or other drug that is in excess of therapeutic amounts or without valid medical indication;

(19) Violated this chapter or any lawful order given or rule adopted by the board;

(20) Is disciplined by a licensing or disciplinary authority of this or any other state or country or is convicted or disciplined by a court of this or any other state or country for an act that would be grounds for disciplinary action under this section;

(21) Engaged in conduct that the board has identified in a rule adopted under section 4747.04 of the Revised Code as requiring disciplinary action under this section.

(B) The board shall not refuse to issue a license or permit to an applicant because of a criminal conviction unless the refusal is in accordance with section 9.79 of the Revised Code.

(C) If the board revokes a person's license under division (A) of this section, the person may apply for reinstatement. The board may require the person to complete an examination or additional continuing education as a condition of reinstatement.

The Legislative Service Commission presents the text of this section as a composite of the section as amended by multiple acts of the General Assembly. This presentation recognizes the principle stated in R.C. 1.52(B) that amendments are to be harmonized if reasonably capable of simultaneous operation.

Last updated March 17, 2023 at 1:20 PM

Section 4747.13 | Complaints.

• Effective: April 5, 2019
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 420 - 132nd General Assembly

(A) Any person who wishes to make a complaint against any person, firm, partnership, association, or corporation licensed pursuant to this chapter shall submit such complaint in writing to the state speech and hearing professionals board within one year from the date of the action or event upon which the complaint is based. The board shall determine whether the charges in the complaint warrant disciplinary action. If the board determines that disciplinary action is warranted, then it shall proceed in accordance with Chapter 119. of the Revised Code.

(B) The board shall investigate any alleged irregularities in the sale or practice of dealing in or fitting hearing aids by persons licensed or permitted under this chapter and any violations of this chapter or rules adopted by the board. The board shall not investigate any person exempted from licensure by section 4747.15 of the Revised Code, provided the person is acting within the scope of the person's license. In conducting investigations under this division, the board may administer oaths, order the taking of depositions, issue subpoenas, and compel the attendance of witnesses and the production of books, accounts, papers, records, documents, and testimony. In any case of disobedience or neglect of any subpoena served on any person or the refusal of any witness to testify to any matter regarding which the witness may lawfully be interrogated, the court of common pleas of any county where that disobedience, neglect, or refusal occurs or any judge thereof, on application by the board, shall compel obedience by attachment proceedings for contempt, as in the case of disobedience of the requirements of a subpoena issued from the court, or a refusal to testify therein.

(C) The board shall petition the court of common pleas of the county in which a person, firm, partnership, or corporation engages in the sale, practice of dealing in or fitting of hearing aids, advertises or assumes such practice, or engages in training to become a licensed hearing aid dealer or fitter without first being licensed, for an order enjoining any such acts or practices. The court may grant such injunctive relief upon a showing that the respondent named in the petition is engaging in such acts or practices without being licensed under this chapter.

Section 4747.14 | Prohibited acts.

• Effective: January 21, 2018
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 49 - 132nd General Assembly

No person, firm, partnership, association, or corporation shall:

(A) Sell or barter or offer to sell or barter a hearing aid dealers or fitters license or trainee permit issued by the state speech and hearing professionals board pursuant to sections 4747.05, 4747.06, and 4747.10 of the Revised Code;

(B) Purchase or procure or attempt to purchase or procure a hearing aid dealers or fitters license or trainee permit with intent to use such license or permit as evidence of the holder's qualification to engage in the practice of dealing in or fitting of hearing aids;

(C) Use or attempt to use as a valid license or permit a license or permit which has been purchased, fraudulently obtained, counterfeited, materially altered, or suspended or revoked;

(D) Alter a license or permit in any way, shape, or form, except as may be specified by the board;

(E) Willfully and knowingly make a false statement in an application for issuance or renewal of a license or permit.

Section 4747.15 | Exemptions.

• Effective: November 5, 1992
• Latest Legislation: Senate Bill 179 - 119th General Assembly

The licensing provisions of this chapter do not apply to:

(A) Any person engaged in the practice of measuring human hearing for the purpose of selection of hearing aids provided that such selection does not result in an actual sale of a hearing aid by such person;

(B) Any practicing physician who is licensed by the Ohio state medical board;

(C) Any audiologist who is licensed pursuant to Chapter 4753. of the Revised Code.

Section 4747.16 | Effect of child support default on license.

• Effective: January 21, 2018
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 49 - 132nd General Assembly

On receipt of a notice pursuant to section 3123.43 of the Revised Code, the state speech and hearing professionals board shall comply with sections 3123.41 to 3123.50 of the Revised Code and any applicable rules adopted under section 3123.63 of the Revised Code with respect to a license issued pursuant to this chapter.

Section 4747.17 | Compliance with law regarding sanctions for human trafficking.

• Effective: January 21, 2018
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 49 - 132nd General Assembly

The state speech and hearing professionals board shall comply with section 4776.20 of the Revised Code.

Section 4747.99 | Penalty.

• Effective: November 25, 1969
• Latest Legislation: Senate Bill 61 - 108th General Assembly

Whoever violates section 4747.02 or 4747.14 of the Revised Code shall be fined not less than one hundred nor more than five hundred dollars or imprisoned not less than ten nor more than ninety days, or both.