Thank you.

Yes I have. I am currently on long term disability (age 63) from my employer's LTD plan. Part of that plan criteria is that I apply for SSDI, which I have done. I live in New York and had to go through the state system first (SSDI contracts it out to NYS) - they denied me and now it is at the federal level and they are questioning the degree of the disability. I am totally deaf in my right ear and have moderate to severe loss in my left. On the last two Speech Recognition Test (SRT) I scored (2019) 44% in my left ear and retook it in 2020 and scored 60%. This may seem like a big difference but, it is really not (even my ENT shrugged it off as normal variation). The test consist of 25 words - the 44% represents 11 words out of 25. 60% equals 15 out of 25. I am being told that it needs to be below 50%. That would mean 12.5 words (obviously there are no half words). As I tried to explain to the lawyer (assigned to me by the LTD provider) that this test, at least to me, is quite meaningless in the real world - you do not have "soundproof silence". An Azi Bio test I took in 2018 showed 29% correct in a noise background, I have been telling him that is the test to use as a "medical equivalency" - hence, I am looking for literature / research to support that.

There is no doubt in my mind that if the audiologist who performed the 44% test was to test me I would score in that range again The 60% tester (two different individuals) has a voice depth / tone (whatever it is) that I just can hear better. The 60% performed the AZI Bio in 2018.

I am trying to get my Audiologist (a Dr. that works for a hearing aid center - very reputable one at that) to look at it and write up a letter to that effect. However, her practice is shut down due to the virus and I cannot get a hold of her (as yet).

Thank you

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