La valutazione medico-legale delle ipoacusie in ambito assistenziale (invalidità civile e sordità civile) e previdenziale INPS

Abstract

The authors address the issue of hearing loss assessment for civil incapacity and INPS social security disability benefits.

The purpose of this work is to compile an easy-to-use handbook for the public and for doctors unfamiliar with legal medicine who need to address the complex issue of performing a medical-legal assessment of hearing loss for INPS social security disability and civil incapacity.

General practitioners often incorrectly fill out INPS online application forms to obtain subsidies from Local Health Authorities (ASL / ASP) for the purchase of hearing aids for entitled citizens recognised as legally disabled due to loss of hearing.

Frequently, instead of «civil incapacity», doctors select the term «legal deafness», introduced in 2006 as the legislative definition for deaf-mute individuals, i.e. persons with congenital deafness or hearing impairments acquired during childhood that have affected the normal learning of speech.