Community Resources

988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline - ASL Services

988 Label

A man with a visible hearing aid communicating into his smartphone. A navy-blue graphic appears from the bottom left that features the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline logo and reads, new American Sign Language services. We’re here to help. www.988lifeline.org

ADA - Workers With Disabilities

Census

2020 Demographic Information from the American Community Survey - Hearing Difficulties

ODHH's Online Directory of Services

Community Directory

  • Mano a Mano - An organization of trilingual (Spanish-English-ASL) Interpreters

Community Organizations

Name of Organizations
Cascadia Deaf Nation
Deaf Education Advocates Foundation
Deaf Bilingual Coalition - Facebook
Deaf Spotlight
Greater Seattle Club of the Deaf
Hearing Loss Association of Washington
Manos de Maiz
Manos de Washington - website coming soon
Northwest Rainbow Alliance of the Deaf - Facebook
Northwest Washington Community of the Deaf
Olympia Deaf Club (TCAD) - Facebook
Puget Sound Association of the Deaf
Three Rivers Association of the Deaf 
Vancouver Association of the Deaf
Washington American Sign Language Teacher Association - Facebook
Washington American Sign Language Teacher Association
Washington Gallaudet University Alumni Association
Washington State Association of the Deaf
Washington State Deaf Senior Citizens
Washington School of the Deaf Alumni Association
Washington State Deaf Blind Citizens
Washington State Hands & Voices
Washington State Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf
Yakima Valley Association of the Deaf - Facebook

Education

Family Resources

Reading with your Child 

Did you know?

Interesting Videos about Deaf Culture

Interesting Reads of ASL and Deaf Culture

Interesting Resources of Inclusive Public Events and Meetings

  • Like the Mic: This is a video campaign launched by Rooted in Rights and the Hearing Loss Association of America (HLAA) to bring awareness that life should be accessible to everyone, regardless of their ability to hear.
  • Closed Captioning: Information about the benefits and requirement of turning on closed captioning at public places.
  • New Seattle Law: Seattle will require closed captioning for TVs in bars, restaurants and stadiums.
  • Let's Loop Seattle: Advocacy to remove communication barriers and open doors to employment, public accommodations, state and local government services, transportation, and telecommunications.
  • Text to 911: Information about the status of Text-to-911 service across Washington State

Financial & Support Resources for Individuals with Hearing Loss

Hearing Aid Resources

Revised Code of Washington (RCW) and Washington Administrative Code (WAC)

Medicaid Coverage for Hearing Aids Starts January 1, 2019

Approved by the legislature last year, coverage of hearing aids for adults on Medicaid will begin January 1, 2019.  The coverage limited, as it only restores coverage that existed before 2011, but it will give eligible adults some hearing aid coverage, where they have none at present.  People with 45 db or more hearing loss in their better ears will be eligible for one hearing aid.  This will be bundled with the hearing evaluation, ear mold and three follow-up visits to the provider.  New hearing aids may be obtained every five years.  Two hearing aids may be approved under certain circumstances and requires prior approval.

Cochlear Implant replacement and repair will also be covered and new CIs may be covered with prior approval. Batteries for hearing aids and CIs are not covered.

The WA Health Care Authority (HCA) is still developing the regulations for this coverage but will operate under interim "emergency" regulations until the final rules have gone through the internal review, public comment and adoption processes.  HCA will have a comprehensive web site with information including Frequently Asked Questions.

Contact: Shauna Muendel, MPA, BSN, RN, ACM-RN
Email: shauna.muendel@hca.wa.gov 

Summer Youth Camps & Programs Opportunities

How to File a Discrimination Complaint

Deaf, hard of hearing and deaf-blind people often face discrimination when attempting to access employment, state/local government agencies, business, nonprofit, housing, airports, health care, mental health, education, and captioning. ODHH has prepared a listing of agencies where they can file a complaint or get help. It’s important to find out the deadline or time limit to file a specific complaint.