[jnieman]

Originally Posted by rubicon

Why can't they sell hearing aids over the counter?

I've heard they may start doing this and the companies that sell the $5000 hearing aids were interviewed and said they are against it. They said they won't be able to get the fit right.

[Jaggy]

I have my audiology report ( I had to ask for it)... you can buy aids online.. they will even send you a wax to make a mold of your ear and you send it back for fit.. I have not yet bought any but I am tempted.. I can't afford new hearing aids and I lost one and the other broke and of course both were out of warranty. I struggle with hearing loss but my checkbook struggles more !!

[biker1]

Please cite some references to support your claims. Do you have any clue as to the actual costs associated with the design, manufacture, and support of hearing aids? Without some real numbers, you are merely speculating. I am pretty sure you are not an engineer.

Originally Posted by graciegirl

I agree...but not thousands of dollars worth of tweaking...???

THIS IS AN EXCELLENT THREAD.

This is an industry that is making moooooocho money.

Just look and see who can afford to buy FULL PAGE ADS in the local papers and constantly have expensive advertising on Television. I am suspicious of them all.

Yes, one does need to have an accurate diagnosis of hearing loss and because of all the new technologies it is becoming easier to diagnose and CHEAPER to manufacture aids to help people hear better.

It isn't like buying a bra, but it does not need to be as expensive as it is.

WE ARE BEING TAKEN TO THE CLEANERS.

[graciegirl]

Originally Posted by biker1

Please cite some references to support your claims. Do you have any clue as to the actual costs associated with the design, manufacture, and support of hearing aids? Without some real numbers, you are merely speculating. I am pretty sure you are not an engineer.

You very well may be right. My first pair were fitted by an audiologist and they did very well. Cost for all out of pocket, about five thousand dollars. (two aids) After five or so years my husband encouraged me to be checked again and see what the new technology was, so I returned to the same practice but a different audiologist. My first pair of aids were analog. The next were digital. There was no absence of tweaking and none of technology and they had things that cut back sound in a car or in a crowded room. They did not work well at all. I went back several times and no help. (This pair cost $6000.) I started wearing my old pair of analogs because I had complete faith in the practice and thought they had fitted me to their best ability. It was owned by a daughter of a long time friend. I wore my old analogs about ten years, one ceased working and so I just wore one. I am old school and I refused to throw that much money away. (They no longer made analogs)

I finally went to The Villages Ear. My husbands company had some kind of deal with a hearing aid company, but I didn't like their pushy calls. So I went to The Villages Ear on the advice of a poster on this forum who I trusted. I said ...Look. I don't really trust you, but I have this deal and it pays $2500 for both ears. They were great. I have a pair of aids that really work and they cost much less than the other two and I was seen a total of eight times until I said it couldn't get any better.

They are amplifiers. There is leeway in pricing. There are many in the hearing aid industry that will make as much money as they can on you. I am a good capitalist girl who likes to see people make money but I don't like them to hit a home run on me.

Oh..I almost forgot. Daughter one has a degree in Audiology from Miami, Ohio. She never used it. Made a career doing something else.

[biker1]

First of all, I wouldn't go to anyone in The Villages. I don't use a dentist in The Villages and I certainly wouldn't choose an audiologist in The Villages. If you shop around and find the right audiologist you can get hearing aids for a reasonable amount of money that are appropriate for your hearing loss. The cost of putting technology in a small package can be substantial. The people supporting the product deserve to be compensated fairly. People in every industry will try to make as much money as they can. Hearing aids are not amplifiers. They are sophisticated digital signal processors which then amplify the frequency bands where you are experiencing hearing loss. Technology never comes cheap.

Originally Posted by graciegirl

You very well may be right. My first pair were fitted by an audiologist and they did very well. Cost for all out of pocket, about five thousand dollars. (two aids) After five or so years my husband encouraged me to be checked again and see what the new technology was, so I returned to the same practice but a different audiologist. My first pair of aids were analog. The next were digital. There was no absence of tweaking and none of technology and they had things that cut back sound in a car or in a crowded room. They did not work well at all. I went back several times and no help. (This pair cost $6000.) I started wearing my old pair of analogs because I had complete faith in the practice. It was owned by a daughter of a long time friend. I wore my old analogs and one ceased working and so I just wore one. I am old school and I refused to throw that much money away. (They no longer made analogs)

I finally went to The Villages Ear. My husbands company had some kind of deal with a hearing aid company, but I didn't like their pushy calls. So I went to The Villages Ear on the advice of a poster on this forum who I trusted. I said ...Look. I don't really trust you, but I have this deal and it pays $2500 for both ears. They were great. I have a pair of aids that really work and they cost much less than the other two and I was seen a total of eight times until I said it couldn't get any better.

They are amplifiers. There is leeway in pricing. There are many in the hearing aid industry that will make as much money as they can on you. I am a good capitalist girl who likes to see people make money but I don't like them to hit a home run on me.

[perrjojo]

My first thought is, I always wonder who THEY are. My second thought is that my hearing aids don't just amplifie sound. The sounds which are amplified are the ones I need to hear. Years ago hearing aides only amplified sound and they were not very useful or comfortable to wear. Most people don't need sound amplification but need certain frequencies amplified. One size does not fit all. Many hearing aides are a Very sophisticated piece of technology. I love my hearing aides and the improvement in my quality of life is worth every penny.

[graciegirl]

Originally Posted by biker1

First of all, I wouldn't go to anyone in The Villages. I don't use a dentist in The Villages and I certainly wouldn't choose an audiologist in The Villages. If you shop around and find the right audiologist you can get hearing aids for a reasonable amount of money that are appropriate for your hearing loss. The cost of putting technology in a small package can be substantial. The people supporting the product deserve to be compensated fairly. People in every industry will try to make as much money as they can. Hearing aids are not amplifiers. They are sophisticated digital signal processors which then amplify the frequency bands where you are experiencing hearing loss. Technology never comes cheap.

Palm Ridge Dentistry is excellent. Both Kareem Jaber and Kathleen Williams are graduates of University of Florida College of Dentistry at Gainesville. Our daughter Helene, born with Williams Syndrome has unusual dentition and they recognized it and knew about it although WS if rare. They retaught me some very good hygiene and I thought I was very aware.

We went to the only ENT office that I know of in The Villages and there was a missed diagnosis on a lump on our daughters neck. It can happen and cat scratch fever is rare. But that is another story.

We like the dentist a lot but would go somewhere else for ENT.

How much did you pay for your aids, Biker1, if you don't mind my asking?

I am glad you are fit well Perrojo. I am fit well too, now... I realize that people's hearing loss needs to be carefully diagnosed and I realize too that I have severe hearing loss in one ear and pretty signicant hearing loss in the other.

I want to thank the person who sent me to Villages Ear. They are excellent. And reasonable in price. My hearing aids are Phonak with all of the latest technology.

[biker1]

They were about $4k with 12 or 20 channels (don't recall the exact number). Middle of the road but appropriate for the hearing loss and the spectrum of the hearing loss. They are my wife's and the difference was staggering. My hearing is fine but I did a substantial amount of research before we got hers. It took a bit of time to find the right audiologist. As you might have guessed, I have a background in technology and have done digital signal processing on noisy data.

By the way, unless you have been in the dentistry business it can be hard to know whether someone is excellent.

Originally Posted by graciegirl

Palm Ridge Dentistry is excellent. Both Kareem Jaber and Kathleen Williams are graduates of University of Florida College of Dentistry at Gainesville. Our daughter Helene, born with Williams Syndrome has unusual dentition and they recognized it and knew about it although WS if rare. They retaught me some very good hygiene and I thought I was very aware.

We went to the only ENT office that I know of in The Villages and there was a missed diagnosis on a lump on our daughters neck. It can happen and cat scratch fever is rare. But that is another story.

We like the dentist a lot but would go somewhere else for ENT.

How much did you pay for your aids, Biker1, if you don't mind my asking?

[graciegirl]

Originally Posted by biker1

They were about $4k with 12 or 20 channels (don't recall the exact number). Middle of the road but appropriate for the hearing loss and the spectrum of the hearing loss. They are my wife's and the difference was staggering. My hearing is fine but I did a substantial amount of research before we got hers. It took a bit of time to find the right audiologist. As you might have guessed, I have a background in technology and have done digital signal processing on noisy data.

By the way, unless you have been in the dentistry business it can be hard to know whether someone is excellent.

That too is true. I think I was impressed with their medical knowledge.

I want you to know that you are one of the people on this forum that I really respect, Biker1.

I certainly still have a lot to learn but I do fairly well for a stubborn old girl.

[EPutnam1863]

Originally Posted by Carla B

My husband agrees and also wants to know why they are so expensive!

The irony is that Medicare won't cover hearing aids while they will cover cochlear implants which cost $50,000 and up.

However, there are far too many situations where hearing aid users sell their hearing aids for alcohol or drugs or whatever.

[graciegirl]

Originally Posted by eputnam1863

the irony is that medicare won't cover hearing aids while they will cover cochlear implants which cost $50,000 and up.

However, there are far too many situations where hearing aid users sell their hearing aids for alcohol or drugs or whatever.

oh my goodness.

[biker1]

It is always best to shop around, educate yourself, ask lots of questions, and be willing to go outside the bubble. I have no doubt that many people are taken advantage of but technology and expertise never comes cheap. As we all get older, ears, teeth, and joints become problematic. Fixing them is generally not cheap and finding the right people may take some time.

Originally Posted by graciegirl

That too is true. I think I was impressed with their medical knowledge.

I want you to know that you are one of the people on this forum that I really respect, Biker1.

I certainly still have a lot to learn but I do fairly well for a stubborn old girl.

[graciegirl]

[QUOTE=biker1;1407006]It is always best to shop around, educate yourself, ask lots of questions, and be willing to go outside the bubble. I have no doubt that many people are taken advantage of but technology and expertise never comes cheap. As we all get older, ears, teeth, and joints become problematic. Fixing them is generally not cheap and finding the right people may take some time.[/QUOTE]

And impatient.

I guess you figured that out.

Another thing is that the hearing aid industry is peopled with folks that have no verified knowledge, except for audiologists. Some are like slick Eddie, the used car salesman. I didn't want to shop for deals and it is difficult to ascertain immediately if your hearing aid works, your brain has to acclimate to the whole process and that takes time. It isn't like putting on glasses that usually correct vision immediately.

Thank God for neuronal plasticity. And my husband. He knows how to get me to do things. I'm so stubborn. He is such a dear man.

[jnieman]

The TV program I was watching (60 min or 20/20 type show) said because of the cost of hearing aids there are a staggering number of people in the U.S. who need hearing aids and cannot afford them. Possibly there is room in the industry for discount places. You see them for glasses all the time.

[villagetinker]

I am now wearing one (1) hearing aid, due to moderate hearing loss in one ear. I went to audiologist (specialist) in The Villages health system (they still accept my insurance). Had both ears tested, then waited 6 months for a retest, same results. I discussed hearing aids and was informed that my insurance had a wide variety of coverages, so I called my insurance and was told HEAR USA was their vendor of choice. Went to HEAR USA (Brownwood), and they tested my ears again, with the same results, and tried a middle range hearing aid around $1600 or so. I explained that this was my first hearing aid, and I wanted the 'entry level' unit, over the ear style, cost around $800, and with my insurance, a 3 year warranty, including replacement, free batteries for 3 years.
RESULT: The entry level unit is working great for me, and I do not care if someone sees the hearing aid. I did not need all the bells and whistles of the expensive units, especially since I only need one. This is a digital unit, and is programmed for my specific hearing loss.
This solution worked for me, and may or may not work for others.
Hope this helps.