Universal Newborn Hearing Screening

The Georgia Department of Community Health and the Cobb and Douglas Public Health partner with our local Hospitals to provide newborn hearing screening for all babies born in Cobb and Douglas County.

Hearing sounds helps a baby to learn to talk and communicate. A baby's brain continues to grow after birth. If a baby cannot hear, parts of the brain needed for language skills may not develop. If an infant is found to have a hearing loss through early screening, they are referred to all the necessary programs and services they will need for more detailed testing. Funds are available to help pay for screening and diagnostic tests for hearing loss when a family has no insurance to cover these costs.

It is recommended that infants be diagnosed before 6 months of age. The earlier a child is found to have a hearing loss and intervention begins the better the developmental outcome for that child. If you have concerns about your child's hearing, speech or language, be sure to discuss them with your child's doctor.