Audiometry. Your average hearing threshold sensitivity for air conduction must be 90 decibels (dB) or worse in your better ear, and you must have a bone conduction hearing threshold of 60 decibels (dB) or worse in your better ear. Your hearing loss needs to be calculated by averaging your hearing at the sound frequencies of 500 hertz (Hz), 1,000 Hz, and 2,000 Hz.
OR
Word recognition test. You must not be able to repeat more than 40% of a list of standardized words spoken in a word recognition test (which tests speech discrimination).
Pure tone, bone conduction, and word recognition tests must be completed by an otolaryngologist (ENT), a licensed physician, or an audiologist working under the supervision of an ENT or physician. All testing is done without your hearing aids in. The SSA can also send you to an audiologist for auditory evoked response testing (which measures brainwave responses to tones) to determine if your hearing is truly as bad as your pure tone audiometry tests indicate.