Why Can't They
 

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

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

Look up "hearing aids" on Amazon. They sell a number of "hearing amplifiers" that are inexpensive. Some are even FDA approved.


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They are exp[ensive so that charlatans can continue to make outrageous profits.

A hearing aid is a pretty simple device and inexpensive to make. All of this fitting to your specific frequencies is for show.

As dubussone said, go online and buy a pair. Companies and people are beginning to wise up to this fraud.

There are some issues with setting them up. You will need an audio test to determine which part of the audio spectrum you are not hearing. Hearing aids are then programmed to amplify those frequency bands where you have hearing loss. Without an audio test, it isn't clear how you would program the hearing aids. If you are just looking for something to uniformly amplify all frequencies then I guess that would be doable. As in most things is life, you get what you pay for.

They are actually pretty sophisticated devices that do a substantial amount of digital signal processing in a very small package.

It takes tweaking to get the aides callabrated to each ear properly. PLUS not everyone's issues are the same (or "cookie cutter")

Exactly. I was quite surprised at the level of fine tuning that could be done and the capabilities of the devices.

Who collects hearing aides in The Villages like they do eyeglasses?

According to a recent article on television news, the FDA is moving to allow hearing aids to be sold 'over the counter' in 2018. This will be interesting when and if it occurs. My guess, the current 'hearing aid' dispensaries will morph into centers to setup hearing aids and do appropriate hearing tests at a cost (these are now typically free).

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.

Interesting.....There will be pushback from a very powerful industry.

I agree hearing aids are expensive but I think this an item where one shouldn't try to save money and get an inferior product. As one person said, "you get what you pay for".

What is it worth to someone to be able to hear what another person is saying. I realize some people don't want to hear what others have to say clearly. To me, it's a quality of life issue.

Because it is so expensive, medicare doesn't pay for good hearing aids. My plan does cover them but the product they offer is garbage or so I was informed, they're not worth getting.

Hi dbussone, I am aware that they sell on line and also aware that they have to be adjusted to fit each person's need. it would seem that since drug stores are getting into the minute clinics that they could adapt for an audio test to match your purchase. I am one of those shoppers that still prefers touching seeing etc merchandise......too much of "it use to cost $495 but today only you can get it for $19.95 and heck today we are really being generous and you can get two for $19.95.............

If my recollection is correct there is only one American hearing aid manufacturer (Starkey). Clearly OTC purchases are a threat too many in this field and they will continue to barricade OTC...but like glasses its going to cave

Here is the link to the story I had previously mentioned, the FDA is considering over the counter hearing aids.

http://thehill.com/regulation/health...r-hearing-aids

As I stated before this will be interesting. My hope is that the audiologists, ENTs, etc., will embrace this change and provide the fine tuning to respond correctly to their hearing tests, at reasonable costs.

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.

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 !!

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.;)

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.

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=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.

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.

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.

biker much of what you say makes sense. However
I view the costs associated with getting hearing aids the same as I do prescription drugs or glasses.

A doctor wrote me a prescription drug for a sore knee that cost me $300 and it didn't work at all. yet 3 ibuprofen did the trick with just one treatment.

Same with a very expensive prescription for a skin condition. I went to /Walmart and found a substitute for $5.00

As to technology. You can get the same technology in a $19,000 car as you can in a $190,000.An article I came upon explained that customers all were experiencing the same problems with the same technology irrespective of what they paid for the car.

I'll make book that when the FDA opens up the right to purchase hearing aids over the counter all of the marketing mystery generated by manufacturers , ENT professionals etc will suddenly disappear.................

Prices for technology do tend to drop with time for the same functionality. I am sure that my wife's hearing aids could be replaced today for less than we paid 5 years ago. You will, however, probably still need to pay for expertise to evaluate your hearing loss and program the hearing aids. I did not see a lot of mystery associated with hearing aids. They measure your hearing loss by frequency and program the hearing aids to boost those frequency bands where you have hearing loss. Clearly there is some degree of art to the fine tuning that comes from experience. I don't have a problem paying people for their expertise. I recall some additional signal processing features to help with background noise in a crowded room. Shopping around and research will help eliminate those who would sell you more capability then you require.

BOOM: [emoji41][emoji106]


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Especially one from Ohio.


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