It's been my recent and frequent experience with elderly persons I know...that medicare does not pay anything towards the price of hearing aids. More info, please?
Why do these hearing aids cost so much? There is so much greed in this world! My mother bought a pair that cost around 4 thousand or so, they stopped working within 7 or so years. Also she had complained constantly that the right one did not work, the audiologist there said they did work her hearing was really bad ( I never thought to test out the aids as that my mother had profound hearing loss. My sister and I took her to the audiologist, who had tested her for those 4 thousand aids, to get her hearing checked and that aid fixed. As my mother was tested my sister and I decided to put the hearing aids in our own ears ( once the woman said they were tuned up that is) , we wanted to see if they worked. Okay we put them in and there was barely any increase in sounds. So when the woman came over to us we told her there was no increase in audio, that we had put them in our ears . She asked if either of us had hearing loss I said no, my sister said she had slight hearing loss so that fruitcake said, "Well if you have no hearing loss you would not notice the volume." WTF? You would hear it waaaay more. There was no talking to that broad. So we knew she was a rip off artist. Good for that slob to be so immoral to pull that; she and the co she works for are highly recommended. I suggest people first try out in their own ears the hearing aids they get for loved ones with hearing loss. Now we have to figure out how to find a reputable audiologist and good hearing aids. I hate immoral lairs especially those who rip off the elderly. And ummm could the batteries be any tinier and harder to insert? Most hearing aids are used by the elderly whose eyesight is usually diminished and whose fingers could be arthritic. I myself when I would reinsert new batteries had not the easiest time holding the tiny battery and placing it perfectly into it's compartment in the aid. I read of rechargeable ones, that is an excellent idea, I wonder how long they have to be charged. But they need to lower the cost of hearing aids, the prices are outrageous!!! Not everyone is on Medicaid. And I hve even read what is deemed dementia can often be severe hearing loss and once hearing aids are used and gotten used to a lot of confusion goes away.
Great question, my husband needs them too but way too much money. Sams Club has some for about $700 for two but he feels they only amplify everything and they sound all tinny. Are they all the same, nothing but noise magnification? Wheres Cabelos? thanks
Try moving to a country that has a single payer medical system that routinely provides hearing aids and eyeglasses (and even dental care) to people who need them because they value their citizens and try to make their lives comfortable and free of unnecessary worry: France, the United Kingdom, Germany, Sweden, Norway, Denmark and other more advanced countries than ours.
See your doctor and get a referral to a licensed audiologist. Medicare will pay up to $2400 for hearing aids. Do not go to Miracle Ear or any other company who advertises through the mail. Use a real doctor, and it would be best to get one for each ear; sometimes one will be o.k., but then it tends to confuse because you're hearing different with each ear. Eyes, ears and heart are our most vital pieces of equipment - we need to take good care of them. Blessings.
I thought that Medicaid would not pay for hearing aids. I would like to find a place where my parents could put money towards something like hearing aids before they needed them. My parents must keep their assets below about $3,700, since my mom is on the elderly waiver, so I'm looking for something they could pay into that would not be considered an asset that could be used for medical devices--sort of like a flex care plan. Anyone have any ideas?
STAY AWAY from Care Credit!!! I have used them a few times and they have awful service, impossible to reach a human if THEY do something like, HIDDEN charges, unexplained bills, and very, very high interest rates. A better idea is join your local credit union and get out a very low interest loan, or even this: take the money you may have or can borrow from a relative, put it into a "secured Loan" account of your own. It has low interest and you gain interest on it at the same time. The first month, you pay nothing and you spend the amount you wish (up to and not exceeding what you put in). The next month you pay an amount that you can choose (I usually go with about $40 over the max time period.) Every month you pay the minimal or the whole thing: and when the low interest is paid you get the amount that you initially put in that was "frozen"; it gets freed up every month you pay. So as you pay off that secured loan, you have funds to use for your other needs or leave it there as a savings. Credit unions are tons better than banks: cheaper, better service, local economy, community supported.
I recommend the Zounds hearing aids as they do not need batteries, you just plug them in to recharge them. There is a credit card named CareCredit which is interest free for 18 mths. that covers medical, dental, vet bills. Just pay more than the minimum payment or else you will have a huge interest bill later...It is owned by GE. If you are a veteran, you may get hearing aids free every four years. I don't know of any insurance plans that pay for hearing aids.
Also find agencies around who can help you to pay for the expensive ones! But I found very helpful device on the market which was priced affordable. It even looks great. I used to take my 98 y/o resident to the movie theater and people thought she has a Bluetooth device in her ear! How cool it is...! OK, it's called hearing aid amplifier. You can look for it on the internet. Read all ratings! People leave their comments for us to read for reason. Amazon also has a great return policy. Make sure you buy rechargeable one even if it might cost $5-$10 more! You will spend way too much on batteries! You might find one for $35-$70 and use it as good as expensive one...
A physician that I respect, just told me that the hunting hearing aids sold at Cabelas, are the same thing that an audiologist would sell you, for $4,000.
There is a service called Care Credit that is kind of like putting the bill on a credit card, but it is only for use with dentures, hearing aids, stuff like that. You pay no interest for different lengths of time (6-18 months), depending on what you are using it for. My husband used it for his hearing aids and was given 18 months interest free. You must be aware, though, to be sure you get the balance paid off during that amount of time, or else the interest that they could have charged from the very beginning will be added onto the bill. So, if you are the kind of person who can figure out how much you would need to pay each month to get the balance paid off before the interest free time is up, and then are very diligent to do it, this might be an option for you.
Contact your local Audiologist and see if they know of a program that can help you. I know my hearing aid office has provided free aids. Go on line and search for resources for hard of hearing people.
I would suggest that you see your Dr. There is a service that I have heard about recently. It's a little "out there" but it's a charity where people donate the hearing aids of loved ones who have passed away. I have no idea what it's called but I know it's out there. Good luck.
But I found very helpful device on the market which was priced affordable. It even looks great. I used to take my 98 y/o resident to the movie theater and people thought she has a Bluetooth device in her ear! How cool it is...! OK, it's called hearing aid amplifier. You can look for it on the internet. Read all ratings! People leave their comments for us to read for reason. Amazon also has a great return policy. Make sure you buy rechargeable one even if it might cost $5-$10 more! You will spend way too much on batteries! You might find one for $35-$70 and use it as good as expensive one...