Hearing aid user

tomjasz

tomjasz

Well-Known Member
Region
USA
City
Minnesnowta
New HA’s from Phonak. Premium level up $2000 from $3800 to $5800. An essential that keeps getting more expensive. I struggle understanding the seemingly greedy HA industry. Sure lesser tech is cheaper but still oppressively priced too.
I pity the folks that can’t fund them. And get fleeced by the online scams. I watched a couple in their 80’s in Walgreens fretting over the battery prices. 3-5 times the cost of premium cells on eBay. A captive of aggressive pricing and no computer. A good project for the local senior center.
 
My previous health insurance from work covered mine 100% the audiological seller even provides free batteries and any other needed consumables. Unfortunately our new health plan does not cover them and we just renewed with the same plan for another year.
 
Just picked up a pair of Eargo's for under $2K with their 20% off sale.
 
Tubbs said:
My previous health insurance from work covered mine 100%
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Yes! My Mirage health plan under Wynn had a one-time HA and Au D coverage. Pretty silly that they aren't covered. It's hard to be a successful worker if you're hearing impaired
 
6zfshdb said:
Eargo
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How long have you been wearing hearing aids? What level of hearing loss? mild?moderate?severe? Not looking to critic anyone's choice just find feedback from other users invaluable.
I just read the Eargo descriptions. Wouldn't work for me. Described as PSAP's.

"Personal Sound Amplification Products, also referred to with the acronym PSAP or "Personal Sound Amplification Devices," are defined by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration as a “wearable electronic product not intended to compensate for impaired hearing.” They are not hearing aids, which the FDA describes as intended to compensate for impaired hearing. PSAPs are intended for individuals with normal hearing. PSAPs are not intended to make up for impaired hearing. PSAPs are not a medical device and are not regulated by the FDA. They are intended for consumers with normal hearing to amplify sounds in the environment for a number of reasons, such as for recreational activities."

Jeebus what a slippery slope this has been for me. Moderate to profound sadly needs more sophistication. I wish there was a similarly priced option that would help me!
That's great that it works for you!

"what?" 3 more whats and you're a lightbulb...
 
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It's nuts. Looking for a pair for my mother, and same thing, even up here in Canada quality aids start at $5K, and climb really fast (and aren't well covered by our 'universal' health care system - small partial coverage at best). I also think the fact that insurance companies pay those prices pretty easily only limits the discount options and alternatives, as the market for uninsured folks is relatively small in comparison.

I'd be leery with a cheaper brand that wasn't tuned to the user, as simple sound amplification could increase the decay rate of the remaining frequencies. Just being louder isn't the right approach to hearing aids.
 
being a hearing aid user with pretty bad loss i think there are going to be some good alternatives coming up in the next few years now that congress has opened that up and you can buy otc

but recently got some airpod pros $250 to try for something else and as i was researching them came across threads where people are replacing their hearing aids with them and they work better...they are supposed to be much more natural sounding

i think for some with mild loss these may be an option
they are not loud enough for me overall but very clear
apple has a lot of hard of hearing user settings on these
you can use a few different apps to do a hearing test and import it into the airpods and it will adjust the airpod off your hearing test
this is all easy to do and you may even be able to use your hearing test from the audiologist, not sure

think most people are using the transparency feature when using like hearing aids

there is a live listen feature where you put your phone in front of the person you are speaking with and it picks up only their voice, like for restaurants etc
still being careful about covid and have not tried that out yet but was very loud and clear testing it in the house..


what intrigues me is they are just getting started with this, cannot wait to see where they are in 5-10 years
wont be surprised if apple is selling hearing aids in 5 years

i am an apple fan and dont know if android has similar things - from what i read you cannot use all the hard of hearing setting with the airpod pros on an android phone , those are only available on iphone
and my understanding is the pros are the only ones that do this
but you can try them for 2 weeks and return if they dont work
 
vincent said:
you can use a few different apps to do a hearing test and import it into the airpods and it will adjust the airpod off your hearing test
this is all easy to do and you may even be able to use your hearing test from the audiologist, not sure

think most people are using the transparency feature when using like hearing aids

there is a live listen feature where you put your phone in front of the person you are speaking with and it picks up only their voice, like for restaurants etc
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That sounds interesting. Might have to do some digging...
 
I have been telling all my friends to try those before buying expensive hearing aids, you can always return them if they don’t work …

you do have to learn the settings and how to change them, I think Apple has some work there
But setting them up initially was easy

People that are not tech savvy you can probably set them to transparency and leave them
 
The VA replaces mine every two or three years but I think you have to be service connected to get these. This time I chose Signia’s and they hook into Apple phone seamlessly. Two friends wear my previous ones.
 
I was born with the hearing of an 80 year old, and have used hearing aids for 50+ years now.

I've had excellent results from the Phonak canal aids I got from Costco nearly a decade ago, and the Rextons I replaced them with a few years ago (also at Costco). Both pairs were molded to my ears, and were as comfortable and effective as any aids I'd ever paid 3X as much for from audiologists.

Costco also has a house brand of behind-the-ear hearing aids that are very affordable ($1400), though I've never tried them because I strongly prefer canal type aids. My first pair from Costco was $1900, and the second $2300. Not sure how much they are now, but they're as good as what audiologists sell... unless you ask an audiologist!
 
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Mulezen said:
The VA replaces mine every two or three years but I think you have to be service connected to get these. This time I chose Signia’s and they hook into Apple phone seamlessly. Two friends wear my previous ones.
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I’m a vet but the VA doesn’t help non combat vets with HA’s.
 
tomjasz said:
How long have you been wearing hearing aids? What level of hearing loss? mild?moderate?severe? Not looking to critic anyone's choice just find feedback from other users invaluable.
I just read the Eargo descriptions. Wouldn't work for me. Described as PSAP's.

"Personal Sound Amplification Products, also referred to with the acronym PSAP or "Personal Sound Amplification Devices," are defined by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration as a “wearable electronic product not intended to compensate for impaired hearing.” They are not hearing aids, which the FDA describes as intended to compensate for impaired hearing. PSAPs are intended for individuals with normal hearing. PSAPs are not intended to make up for impaired hearing. PSAPs are not a medical device and are not regulated by the FDA. They are intended for consumers with normal hearing to amplify sounds in the environment for a number of reasons, such as for recreational activities."

Jeebus what a slippery slope this has been for me. Moderate to profound sadly needs more sophistication. I wish there was a similarly priced option that would help me!
That's great that it works for you!

"what?" 3 more whats and you're a lightbulb...
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I'm sorry that your hearing loss is so severe.

In my case, I have mild to moderate age related high frequency hearing loss which I started to notice about 10 years ago. I get along OK without HA's but the Eargo's (PSAPs), help in noisy environments like restaurants, meetings etc. They also help while watching TV. They can be individually adjusted for volume, bass & treble with 4 presets for different conditions. They are controlled via a smartphone app which has the ability to measure your hearing loss and automatically adjust the settings. They also fit completely in the ear canal and are all but invisible. Yes, they are PSAPs but do have some of the features of professionally designed units. For me anyway, the Eargo's are a step up from simple sound amplifiers but lack the professional "fine tuning" of more expensive units.

My MD. says the Eargo's are all I really need at this point. People with more severe hearing loss need professionally made HA's with acoustics specifically matched to their hearing abilities. Many require taking impressions of the ear canal for proper fit. It's a labor intensive process and I can understand why they cost so much.
 
Personally, I recognize the day is coming, but I'm not there yet.
In the interim, I am trying some Nuheara IQbuds2 MAX.

Basically wireless earbuds with extra features - I'm reasonably happy with them, and still trying to fine tune.
If nothing else - I have a set of wireless earbuds...

Review here.
 
Early on you played in a band…early on I was ground-crew for fighters…pretty close to the same noise level…aging plays a role…continued GL to you
I have learned to love the HA’s. The fullness of Bach, the definition of Mozart (4 horn concertos) came back.…it’s hard to overstate that value.
 
vincent said:
5-10 years
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Not exciting for a fella statistically that close to the dirt nap.

the new aids are really quite sophist. Now able to use on any BT capable device. I’ve had streaming capable aids for nearly ten years. $380 a year. Newest cost $580 per year. Unfortunately it’s a pay upfront or suck rotten eggs with greedy credit sources. Thankful for the ability to pay. Pity the poor working guy!
 
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