Social Policy Entrepreneur specializing in Hearing Loss

Janice S. Lintz is a passionate, accomplished hearing loss advocate. She is well known and respected for her ability to assess situations, identify areas for improvement, recommend solutions, and implement programs that help organizations improve customer service and grow profits. Her ability to break down issues and do what is needed to affect change has earned her unprecedented access to business leaders, government officials, political leaders, and respected academians around the world.

Since 2002, Janice has become the global “go-to” person on all matters related to access for people who are deaf or hard of hearing. Equipped with an undergraduate degree in business, a law degree, and a Masters of Public Administration from Harvard Kennedy School, Janice leverages her broad background to articulate compelling business cases for organizations in both the for-profit and not-for-profit worlds to improve hearing access for customers with hearing loss.

A culture lover, Janice felt her heart sink whenever her daughter – diagnosed with hearing loss at 2 ½ – struggled to understand museum guides and actors on stage, even with hearing aids. Not one to wait, Janice plunged into the research and learned that cultural venues could provide better hearing access with relatively standard technology, such as the induction loop, a coil placed around a room that wirelessly transmits amplified sound to a hearing aid or cochlear implant.

Janice works with domestic and international organizations to benchmark best practices and helps them leverage the most effective solutions for their situations. Working pro bono with multiple organizations, she:

• Helped the NYC Transit recommend that induction loops be included in all NYC subway information booths and call boxes as part of President Obama’s $13.5 million Stimulus Package.
• Worked with the NYC Taxi and Limousine Commission to implement this same technology in all taxis. New York City is the first United States city to offer this technology in its transit systems.
• Catalyzing the Over-the-Counter hearing aids with Senator Warren and Apple’s entry into the hearing aid market. The Food & Drug Administration cited her testimony in the footnotes of its Proposed rule for Medical Devices; Ear, Nose, and Throat Devices; Establishing Over-the-Counter Hearing Aids.
• Spearheaded hearing access at the Smithsonian’s National Air & Space Museum by working with the Congressional Appropriations Committee. The 2021, 2022, 2023, and 2024 Congressional Appropriations Budget included paragraphs addressing the issues.
• Testified before US Congressional Subcommittee on the National Park Service, resulted in the reinstatement of Recreation Fee Program funding which improved hearing access. Further, she co-wrote NPS’ Accessibility Guidelines for hearing loss creating a Federal definition of “Effective Access,” (acknowledged on page 76)
• Persuaded Build-A-Bear Workshop to develop a hearing aid accessory for their toys. The hearing aids are part of The Strong National Museum of Play collection.
• Championed idea/partnered with Richard Branson of Virgin Group to add captions to In-Flight entertainment; Delta followed; pending before US DOT.
• Initiated contact with Delta CEO and introduced/recommended induction loops at gates; adopted by Delta and other major airlines.
• Collaborated with Association of National Advertisers on TV commercial closed caption standards, which influenced FCC’s captioning standards.
• Convinced the Associated Press to update the AP Stylebook to follow the National Center on Disability and Journalism Guide. Now, it uses language that empowers people with disabilities, respects their dignity, avoids defining them by their disabilities, and promotes equal respect and opportunities. The update also removed outdated and offensive terms.
• Co-authored an International Code Council (ICC) standard requiring induction loops at service windows in stadiums worldwide after transforming the NY Yankee stadium into the most hearing-accessible in the U.S.
• Partnered with the U.S. Pentagon/Air Force incorporating hearing access at the Dayton Aviation Center, and later the Intrepid Museum, so they could receive the US Space Shuttle.
• Promoted the use of induction loops in rail cars, leading to their installation in San Francisco’s BART system, with Amtrak’s 2025 rail cars also set to include them.
• Authored the widely downloaded article “How to Buy a Cell Phone if You Have a Hearing Loss,” which identified FCC and FDA regulation gaps, influenced mobile carriers to provide accessible information, and contributed to ensuring all carriers and iPhones are now hearing-aid compatible.
• Anticipated Apple’s potential removal of the telecoil feature, which allows individuals who are hard of hearing to connect directly to their phones without battery drain or Bluetooth issues, and engaged with the FCC through testifying, meetings, and submitting Comments (2016, 2020, 2023, 2024) successfully preserving this technology despite ongoing efforts by phone companies to promote proprietary features for profit.
• Collaborated with Joseph Brodecki, founder of the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, and spearheaded the implementation of induction loops and captions across all exhibits, enhancing accessibility for visitors with hearing loss and completing the project within one year. (Please scroll down to the museum map.)
• Developed a three-pronged global approach in 2002 to enhance accessibility for individuals who are deaf and hard of hearing, adopted by over 100+ locations worldwide and endorsed by the American Alliance of Museums (2015) and the National Park Service (2016), while internationally advising the Royal Collection (UK), partnering with the Stavros Niarchos Foundation (Greece), contributing to the Ecuador Government’s global access book (English and Spanish,)and assisting Nestlé’s Maison Cailler in implementing hearing access (Switzerland), with this model becoming an unofficial global best practice in accessibility standards.
• Collaborated with Playbill, The New York Times, and The Wall Street Journal to include the ear symbol in theater directories, marking the first identification of hearing access in Broadway theaters, which spurred Netherlander theaters to install induction loops during renovations and significantly enhanced accessibility and inclusivity in the theatrical community.
• Convinced Darren Walker at the Ford Foundation to launch its first-ever grant making program dedicated to advancing the rights of people with disabilities in the United States, resulting in an annual budget of $10 million and over $50 million invested in disability-focused projects and organizations from 2018 to 2020.
• Led a pioneering initiative since 2002 to establish a model of excellence in hearing access in New York City, implementing cutting-edge accessibility measures across multiple sectors, which was featured in The New York Times highlighting New York City access. The City was the first U.S. city to integrate induction loops in museums, subway information booths, taxis, and Broadway theaters, prompting organizations like the National Park Service and the US Access Board to study and replicate these innovative approaches, thereby setting a global benchmark for accessibility.

The Washington, DC resident and mother of two. Janice is a 2025 United Nations’ World Health Organization’s World Hearing Forum Changemaker, 2023 Presidential Management Fellow Finalist and 2023 Forbes 50/50 Finalist. Congressmember Paul Tonko awarded Janice Congressional Recognition in 2022, 2022 NYS Disability Rights Hall of Fame Inductee. Janice was included in The Strong National Museum of Play’s Build-A-Bear Workshop’s Bears having Hearing Aids exhibit. Profiled in the 2022 The Success Factor book, cited in the footnotes in the Proposed FDA OTC Hearing Aid Regulations in the 2021 books,  Tell Her She Can’t Changemaker: Inspiring Stories of Unstoppable Women and Beyond Diversity. Janice is also a 2018 The Points Guy + Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Goalkeepers Partnership Travel Grant Recipient, 2016 Aspen Institute Spotlight Health Scholar, a 2016 United State of Women Summit Nominated Changemaker, and 2008 People Magazine Hero.

New York State Governor David Paterson appointed her to the Interagency Council for Services to the Deaf, Deaf-Blind, and Hard of Hearing twice. Federal Communication Commission (FCC) Chairman Kevin J. Martin appointed her to represent the interests of people with hearing loss for two terms on the FCC’s Consumer Advisory Committee. The New York City Mayor’s Office appointed her to the Taxi of Tomorrow Stakeholder Committee. The US Access Board appointed Janice to both the Rail Committee and the Passenger Vessel Emergency Alarms Advisory Committee.

Janice is a former Advisory Board member of The Burton Blatt Institute at Syracuse University, and The Lower East Side Tenement Museum’s Advisory Committee. She has participated in seven Renaissance Weekend retreats for business and finance leaders, government, the media, religion, medicine, science, technology, and the arts.

Janice is also a former Consumer Education/Travel/Food writer. Thrive Global, The Outdoor Journal, Forbes/Lifestyle, Forbes Woman Africa, Yahoo Travel, Huffington Post, Johnny Jet, and Consumer Mojo published her articles. Condé Nast Traveler, Departures, Travel + Leisure, Good Housekeeping, Skift, Southern Living, Fox Business, NPR, MSN.com, Reader’s Digest and The Washington Post, USA Today, Peter Greenberg quoted her travel recommendations. She has traveled to 158+3 UN countries and 218 Travelers’ Century Club destinations in her quest to visit every country in the world.