Hearing Aid Specialists

Renewal

You can renew your license up to 60 days before your current license expires.

Licensees may renew your license 60 days before the current expiration date. Multiple renewal notifications will be sent if the license has not yet been renewed. Licensees are encouraged to renew early to avoid a late fee or lapse in licensure.

All continuing education requirements must be completed prior to submitting your application for renewal.

Continuing Education

Licensees are responsible for meeting all continuing education requirements and should review the rules carefully and frequently. Review the rules for detailed information about continuing education definitions, requirements, standards, criteria and other important specific to this profession.

The licensing board does not pre-approve continuing education providers, sponsors or individual programs. It is the licensees’ responsibility to determine if the continuing education programs they attend meet the requirements of their professional licensing board.

A percentage of licensees are randomly audited following each license renewal cycle. If selected, the licensee must submit to the board office an individual certificate of completion issued to the licensee or evidence of successful completion of the course from the course sponsor. These documents must contain the course title, date(s), contact hours, sponsor and licensee's name. In some instances, licensees will be requested to provide to the board additional information, including program content, objectives, presenters, location and schedule. Many times an inclusive brochure meets this requirement.

When selecting continuing education programs, licensees need to make sure they are compliant with administrative rule requirements. Some professions require licensees to meet specific requirements as a condition of renewal. These may include limits on presentation method (e.g. self-study, ICN, etc.), specific hours on ethics and Iowa law and rules, clinical content, or hours required in a specific practice discipline.

To ensure compliance, each licensee must understand the continuing education administrative rules for their profession prior to choosing and attending a particular program. No matter what a program brochure indicates, it is the responsibility of the licensee to ensure compliance with licensing requirements.

In summary all licensees should:

Be familiar with the continuing education requirements of their professional boards.
Obtain inclusive written materials about continuing education programs from program sponsors for post-renewal auditing purposes.
Maintain certificates of completion that includes the program or course title, date(s), contact hours, sponsor and licensee's name for four years.

Potential sponsors are responsible for independently determining if the programs they provide conform to the continuing education requirements set forth in the rules regulations of the professional boards.

To make this determination, thoroughly review the rules for the board(s) in which you are interested prior to offering continuing education to Iowa licensees. By providing inclusive information about the content, objectives and applicability of your program to professional practice, you will assist licensees to make informed decisions when selecting continuing education.

A percentage of licensees in every profession regulated by a licensing board are randomly selected following each license renewal cycle. For auditing purposes the licensee must submit to the board office an individual certificate of completion issued to the licensee or evidence of successful completion of the course from the course sponsor. These documents must contain the course title, date(s), contact hours, sponsor and licensee's name. In some instances, licensees will be requested to provide to the board additional information to assure compliance with continuing education requirements, including program content, objectives, presenters, location and schedule. For this reason, sponsors should provide these items to licensees in writing. An inclusive brochure may meet this requirement.

Additionally, sponsors should consider profession-specific requirements that licensees must address to assure compliance with continuing education rules when preparing written materials such as method of presentation (home study, ICN, etc.), inclusion of specific hours on ethics and Iowa law and rules, certification status by national associations or boards, clinical content, and hours required in a specific practice discipline.

In summary sponsors should:

Be familiar with the continuing education requirements of their professional audiences.
Provide inclusive written materials to all program participants.
Notify licensees that materials should be retained for four years for auditing purposes.
Provide a certificate of completion that includes the program or course title, date(s), contact hours, sponsor and licensee's name.

Iowa Code

Laws are contained in the Iowa Code. They are enacted by the Iowa Legislature and provide statutory authority to the professional licensure boards.

Chapter 154A - Hearing Aid Specialists Law

Iowa Administrative Code

The professional licensure boards adopt rules to interpret and implement the Iowa Code. Administrative rules have the force and effect of law.

Federal regulations now require that prescription hearing aids be sold only upon an order from a practitioner. See 21 C.F.R. § 801.109. Prescription hearing aids will require a written or oral authorization from a practitioner licensed by law to administer the device (see § 801.109)- Federal Register: Medical Devices; Ear, Nose, and Throat Devices; Establishing Over-the-Counter Hearing Aids.