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4May2016

Budget 2016-17
The Australian Government delivered its 20162017 Federal
Budget last night.
The Government will continue to
investigate the transfer of ownership of Australian Hearing,
and the investigation will be paid for by Australian Hearing.

Guidelines for music venues


Music Victoria worked closely with many organisations to gain
a snapshot of the Victorian live music industry, such as noise
levels, hosting all-ages gigs and planning-law reform, as well
as providing practical suggestions for live music venues on
how best to manage them.

Accessible transport
The Department of Infrastructure and Regional Development
is developing a set of guidelines that address a 'whole-ofjourney' approach to accessible public transport planning and
delivery.

We acknowledge the traditional owners of country throughout Australia, and their


continuing connection to land, sea and community. We pay our respect to them
and their cultures, and to elders both past and present. We acknowledge the
challenge that faces Indigenous leaders and families to overcome the unacceptably
high levels of ear health issues among first Australians.

Budget 2016-17
The Commonwealth Treasurer, The Hon Scott Morrison MP delivered Australia's 20162017
Federal Budget last night.
A note in the budget papers reveals that the Government will continue to investigate the
transfer of ownership of Australian Hearing, and that the investigation will be paid for by
Australian Hearing.
Australian Hearing Services a strong and viable future
The Government will provide $2.2 million to consider the future ownership of
Australian Hearing Services to ensure it has a strong and viable future in the
context of a contestable National Disability Insurance Scheme market and
continues to provide high quality valued services to Australians with a hearing
loss.
The Government has not yet made a decision to transfer Australian Hearing into
non government ownership. People with a hearing loss who currently receive
(or are eligible to receive) Community Service Obligation services will continue
to receive those services.
The cost of this measure will be offset by a special dividend payment from
Australian Hearing in 2016 17.
Deafness Forum of Australia says: Dont let children fall through the gaps with
changes to the way hearing services will be delivered in Australia.
Hearing impaired and Deaf children and their families are among those most at risk from
plans to transfer the responsibility for delivering their services from the Australian
Government Hearing Services Program to the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS).
Under the NDIS there will be a choice of service provider for the first time. Personal choice
is a concept we would all support, however it is concerning in this instance because the
private market is untested in the delivery of services to children with hearing loss. The
introduction of contestability introduces significant risks that must be understood and
managed in terms of access, expertise, quality, standards and client outcomes.
The Government should create an expert panel, with proper representation of the people
who will be most affected by these changes to advise it on the risks and the ways to avoid
or minimise risks.

Budget 2016: Disability support crackdown to


help fund National Disability Insurance Scheme
By political reporter Jane Norman, Australian Broadcasting Corporation
The Federal Government will again crack down on the Disability Support Pension and cut
off carbon tax compensation for all new welfare recipients to help fund the $22-billion
National Disability Insurance Scheme.
The Government has found $2.1 billion in savings from the welfare budget which it will
move into the new NDIS savings fund.
Nearly $1.4 billion will be saved by stopping all new recipients of Government welfare
payments from receiving carbon tax compensation which, for a pensioner, was worth up to
$14 a fortnight.
Federal Treasurer Scott Morrison said in his budget announcement, those who were
receiving the compensation would continue to do so but it was "nonsensical" for the
Government to extend that to new welfare recipients.
"What we will be doing, going forward, is anyone coming onto benefits into the future, well
we're not going to have carbon tax compensation for a carbon tax that doesn't exist."
The Government also expects to save $62 million by assessing 30,000 Disability Support
Pension recipients' capacity to work.
News

ABC

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-05-03/disability-support-crackdown-to-help-fund-

ndis/7380828

Accessible transport
Department of Infrastructure and Regional Development is developing a set of guidelines
that address a 'whole-of-journey' approach to accessible public transport planning and
delivery.
The Department wants to hear from as many people as possible about their experiences in
relation to whole-of-journey planning for public transport, especially those with heightened
accessibility requirements.
Click here to access the survey at https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/N6WDDJ2
The survey will close Friday 13 May 2016.

Brett Lee wants kids suffering from hearing


disability to lead normal life

There are so many kids across India who suffer from hearing loss issues. Former Australia
speedster wants this issue to be thrown out of the window and wishes that these kids lead
a normal life just like others.
Thus, Brett Lee decided to be the brand ambassador of Cochlear's global hearing
ambassador. He has named this campaign as the 'Sound of Cricket.'
"I am absolutely thrilled to be a part of this noble cause. I am here to raise awareness in
this country. If the kids across, who are suffering from hearing loss issue, are cured, then
not only cricket, but they can play any sport," Lee said at a press conference.
"This implant will bring a broad smile in those faces. Their confidence will also be high.
The psychological impact will also reduce with time. These kids can study in normal school
and not in the special schools."
When asked whether he knows any cricketer who has had to deal or dealing with such a
problem, Lee stated that he knew a kid named Austin, an Indian origin child born and
brought up in Australia, was suffering from this problem. When he played he had to put
one of his ears forward if he had to listen to anything as cricket is all about sound, eye and
hand co-ordination. This boy was helped by Cochlear. He got an implant and he was
perfectly fine after a certain period of time post his implant.
By Rajarshi Majumdar.

International Business Times, http://www.ibtimes.co.in/brett-lee-wants-

kids-suffering-hearing-disability-lead-normal-life-674230

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Safer sound and healthy hearing becomes part of Victorian live


music best practice.
The inclusion of safe sound best practice in Music Victorias new guide for live music venues
highlights how seriously the Victorian music industry now views the issue of noise-induced
hearing loss.
Music Victoria CEO Patrick Donovan said there is a growing awareness about the risks of
hearing loss and our new live music venue guide reflects this fact.
Further highlighting this point was the fact that our guide came out days after AC/DC front
man Brian Johnson announced to the world his hearing loss now threatens his ability to
sing for one of the worlds greatest rock bands, Patrick explained.
Soon after Johnsons announcement, pioneer Grunge band Pearl Jam announced they will
give out ear plugs at concerts to help reduce the risks of their fans developing hearing
loss.
As part of the process of putting together the Best Practice Guidelines for Live Music
Venues, Music Victoria worked closely with many organisations to gain a snapshot of the
issues currently facing the Victorian live music industry, such as noise levels, hosting allages gigs and planning-law reform, as well as providing practical suggestions for live music
venues on how best to manage them. The Best Practice Guidelines for Live Music Venues
was originally developed in 2012 during a live music roundtable attended by music industry
and State Government representatives.
As a key document that has helped Victorias live music venues lead Australias live music
sector regular updates are essential to reflect the ever changing landscape and provide
robust, evidence-based information for people running live music venues, Patrick said.

Included in the Guides Occupational Health and Safety Chapter is a section on sound levels
that explains the hearing loss risks of loud music and what are the best-practice sound
management solutions to manage them.
The HEARing Cooperative Research Centre (HEARing CRC), through its HEARsmart project
that provides accessible information about the hearing-loss risks associated with loud-noise
exposure, was one of the organisations consulted by Music Victoria for sound management
section of this Chapter.
HEARsmart Manager Jane Sewell said With the growing number of young people
experiencing tinnitus and hearing loss, this really is an important area for us to work in,
Jane said.
Music Victoria is the independent, not-for-profit, non-government voice of the Victorian
contemporary music industry. Download the Best Practice Live Music Guidelines at
http://www.musicvictoria.com.au/assets/Documents/2013/BestPracticeLiveMusic_Guidelines.pdf

Music Victoria and HEARsmart will hold a forum on 9 June 2016 to help musicians, sound
engineers and live music venues find out ways they can have better hearing health and to
get some direct feedback about the issue. Go to:
http://www.musicvictoria.com.au/events/event/hearing-health-tips-for-musicians-industry-and-punters

The National Deafness Sector Summit in Sydney on Saturday is a conference for people
who have a hearing impairment, a chronic disorder of the ear, are Deaf or deafblind and
the families who support them. The Summit receives funding from the Australian
Government as a National Disability Conference initiative.

Whirled Foundations new website has a forum


for members
Members of Whirled Foundation have online access to a discussion forum to post questions,
respond to other members queries and share information with peers.
If you are not a member of Whirled Foundation, its a great time to join the community,
with membership joining fees reduced for a limited time.
If you have been diagnosed with a chronic dizzy or balance problem, joining Whirled
Foundation is a positive step in learning to manage your condition.
Support extends to your family and friends and can help them to understand the problems
and feelings you are experiencing.
If you are a health professional, joining Whirled Foundation gives you access to a
community focussed on providing information, professional resources and research.
http://www.whirledfoundation.org/membership-benefits/

Half of all farmed fish have hearing loss


By Douglas Main
New research suggests the way we raise fish in farms and hatcheries could be causing
harmful changes to their bodies.
A study published April 28 in the journal Scientific Reports found that half of the farmraised fish examined had significant deformities in their ear bones, which are vital to
hearing. And the chances for this deformity increase with age: All of the large 100-plus
farm-raised salmon (weighing more than 9 pounds) had the deformity in at least one ear,
says study first author Tormey Reimer, who completed the research as a graduate student
at the University of Melbourne.

Fish with malformed ear bones, also known as otoliths, may lose as much as 50 percent of
their hearing sensitivity, Reimer says.
The otoliths of these fish vibrate at a different frequency than the rest of the animals body
and are used to pick up and measure sound waves, as well as to convert them into an
electrical current that the brain processes. In healthy fish, these bones are composed of
aragonite, a crystalline form of calcium carbonate. But as Reimer and colleagues found,
many of these otoliths were deformed and composed of a different material vaterite.
The presence of these vaterite deformities was 10 times higher in farmed fish than in wild
animals, according to the study.
From Newsweek http://www.newsweek.com/half-all-farmed-fish-have-hearing-loss-thanksdeformed-ear-bones-453230

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