The following statement is attributed to Gary Shapiro, president and CEO, Consumer Technology Association (CTA), regarding President Trump signing into law the FDA Reauthorization Act of 2017, which includes the Over-the-Counter Hearing Aid Act:

"Thanks to President Trump signing the FDA Reauthorization bill into law - which includes language to create a new class of over-the-counter (OTC) hearing aids - consumers with mild-to-moderate hearing loss will no longer be at the mercy of companies selling expensive and cost-prohibitive hearing aids that cost thousands of dollars. Instead, 40 million Americans living with hearing loss in the future can buy over-the-counter hearing aids at roughly one-tenth of what traditional hearing aids costs.

"We look forward to working with the Food and Drug Administration to implement the new class of over-the-counter hearing aids and share CTA's recently developed quality-assurance logo to ensure consumers will be able to distinguish high-quality hearing enhancement devices for mild-to-moderate hearing loss from cheap, ineffective personal amplifiers."

According to CTA research, 1.5 million devices designed to amplify ambient sounds are expected to be sold in the U.S. this year.