THE EVERETT ADVOCATE – FRiDAy, SEpTEmbER 30, 2022 Page 25 Say nr Sa a y Senior Seni by Jim Miller Free Online Hearing Tests You Can Take at Home Dear Savvy Senior, Can you recommend any good online hearing tests? My husband has hearing loss, but I can’t get him to go in and get his hearing checked, so I thought a simple online test could help him recognize he has a problem. What can you tell me? Loud Talking Linda Dear Linda, There’s actually a growing number of very good online and app-based hearing tests available that will let your husband check his hearing on his own. These tests are a quick and convenient option for the millions of Americans that have mild to moderate hearing loss but often ignore it, or don’t want to go through the hassle or expense of visiting an audiologist for a hearing exam. Who Should Test? Hearing loss for most people develops gradually over many years of wear and tear, which is the reason many people don’t realize they actually have a hearing problem. Anyone who has difficulty hearing or understanding what people say, especially in noisier environments or over the phone. Or, if you need a higher volume of music or TV than other people, should take a few minutes to test their hearing. Self-Hearing Tests Online and app-based hearing tests can serve as a great screening tool. They are not meant to be a diagnosis, but rather to give you an idea of how bad your hearing loss is and what can be done about it. For most do-it-yourself hearing tests, you’ll be advised to wear ear headphones or earbuds and sit in a quiet spot. You also need to know that there are two diff erent types of tests available. One type is known as pure-tone testing, where tones are played in decreasing volumes to determine your specifi c level of hearing loss. And the other type is known as speech-innoise or digits-in-noise (DIN) where you’ll be asked to identify words, numbers, or phrases amid background noise. Where to Test If your husband uses a smartphone or tablet, two of my favorite app-based hearing tests are the hearWHO app created by the World Health Organization, and the Mimi Hearing Test app. Both apps are free to use and are available through the App Store and Google Play. HearWHO allows users to check their hearing status and monitor it over time using a DIN test, while Mimi uses pure-tone and masked threshold tests to give you a detailed picture of your hearing abilities. There are also a wide variety of online hearing tests your husband can take on a computer. Some top online tests – all off ered by hearing aid manufacturers – for speech-in-noise or DIN tests can be accessed at ReSound (resound.com/en-us/ online-hearing-test) and Mircle Ear (miracle-ear.com/online-hearing-test). And some good online hearing tests for pure-tone testing are available by Signia (signia.net/en/service/ hearing-test); Ergo (eargo. com/hearing-health/hearing-check); and MD Hearing Aid (mdhearingaid.com/hearing-test). All of these hearing tests are completely free to use and take less than fi ve minutes to complete. What to do with Results If the tests indicate your husband has hearing loss, it’s best to think of that as a starting point. He should take results to his doctor or an audiologist for further evaluation. Many insurance providers and Medicare Advantage plans cover routine hearing exams, however original Medicare does not. If his hearing loss is mild to moderate, he should look into the new over-the-counter (OTC) hearing aids, which are available this fall online and at retailers like Best Buy, Walgreens and CVS. OTC hearing aids don’t require a prescription or medical examination for purchase and they’re much more affordable than traditional hearing aids you buy through an audiologist or a licensed hearing instrument specialist. Send your senior questions to: Savvy Senior, P.O. Box 5443, Norman, OK 73070, or visit SavvySenior. org. Jim Miller is a contributor to the NBC Today show and author of “The Savvy Senior” book. nior ior Penalty Relief From The IRS U nder IRS Notice 2022-36 released by the IRS in August, taxpayers will receive automatic relief from failure to file penalties for calendar years 2019 and 2020. Over 1.6million taxpayers have already received late filing penalty notices and many have already paid the balances due. The IRS expects to issue refund checks approximating $1.2 billion. The abatement of penalties will be automatic. Taxpayers are not required to request abatement of these penalties. The IRS should have made payment of these refunds to taxpayers by the end of September. The IRS has been so backed up since the pandemic, don’t be surprised if they send out checks well into October or even November. All 2019 and 2020 tax returns will need to be fi led by September 30, 2022 in order to receive the relief from the failure to fi le penalties. This relief granted by the Internal Revenue Service is intended to help struggling taxpayers that were affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and to allow it to focus on processing the millions of tax returns that have not been processed as well as millions of taxpayer correspondence letters received by the IRS. The IRS is hoping to return back to normal for the 2023 tax fi ling season. It has been next to impossible to reach the IRS by phone. Even the Priority Hotline dedicated to CPA’s and enrolled BEACON | FROM PAGE 23 Suppor ters say the media has grown and expanded in many directions and students should be well educated on its many aspects. Sponsor Rep. David Rogers (D-Cambridge) did not respond to repeated attempts by Beacon Hill Roll Call asking him to comment on his bill and its defeat. REQUIRE STUDENTS agents has been nearly impossible to get through to over the past two years. The types of tax returns eligible for relief would be Form 1040, 1041, 1120, 1120-S, 1065, 990, 990-PF, 990-T and several others. Another reason for the penalty relief is that additions to tax or penalties for failure to timely fi le returns continued to accrue during periods of postponed filing dates for both 2019 and 2020 under the presidential emergency declaration in March of 2020 in response to the pandemic. The AICPA and other groups and fi rms have repeatedly advocated that the IRS provide failure to fi le and other penalty relief under procedures similar to those for a first-time abatement administrative waiver, but based upon the COVID-19 pandemic as reasonable cause for the failure. Joseph D. Cataldo is an estate planning/elder law attorney, Certified Public Accountant, Certified Financial Planner, AICPA Personal Financial Specialist and holds a master’s degree in taxation. TO DISCLOSE WHY THEY CHOOSE TO GO TO A SCHOOL OUTSIDE THEIR CITY OR TOWN (H 704) – Under current law, students can request, under the inter-district school choice program, that they be allowed to attend a school outside of where they live. Participation in the program is limited to 2 percent of all public school students enrolled.Each district decides whether it will participate in this program. For the 2021-2022 school year, 170 or 53 percent of Massachusetts’ total districts chose to participate in the program. Tuition is paid by the sending district to the receiving district. The bill would require these students and their parents or guardians to meet with the school’s administrators to discuss the reasons for wanting to leave the district. Supporters say this does not alter the program but simply adds another reasonable reBEACON | SEE PAGE 27 ~ Home of the Week ~ REVERE....WELCOME HOME! Wonderful New Construction offers 8 room Center Entrance Colonial boasting elegant, designer kitchen with quartz counters, oversized island for seating, dining room with sliders to pavers patio, living room with gas fireplace, desirable 1st floor family room, great open floor plan - perfect for entertaining, 4 bedrooms, 2 1/2 baths, spacious master suite offers walkin closet, private bath w/double sink vanity and custom, stand-up, convenient 2nd floor laundry, hardwood flooring throughout, great mudroom when entering from garage, level,fenced lot. GREAT opportunity - GREAT new home! 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