Licensure of Hearing Aid Dealers is needed, but could be administered by the Board of Examiners for Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology.

The objective of this review was to determine if licensure of hearing aid dealers is necessary to protect the public and if so, whether an independent board is necessary to administer licensure. This review also assessed the Board’s compliance with Chapter 30 requirements and other applicable sections of West Virginia Code. The Legislative Auditor finds that the Board is inaccessible and does not protect the public. Licensure continues to be necessary; however, the Board itself is unnecessary and licensure could be administered by the Board of Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology. Furthermore, the Board's end-of-year cash balance has declined to a concerning level. PERD also noted significant administrative issues.