For years, debate has raged over the cost of hearing aids, at times, pitting manufacturers and hearing healthcare professionals against the very people they hope to serve. Truth be told, both offer valid points. Manufacturers assert that the high cost of hearing aids – often thousands of dollars – is due to a combination of factors: the cost of research and development; the fact that hearing aids are custom fit and designed to match the unique demands of each patient; and the method of “bundling” professional services for the care provided afterward. Consumers, on the other hand, offer reasoning just as valid when they suggest that if the cost of hearing aids were lowered, more people would buy them.
Indisputably, a significant portion of the 31 million Americans with hearing loss simply can’t afford hearing aids. To add to the controversy of the debate, new findings released by the Better Hearing Institute (BHI) in Alexandria, Va., indicate that hearing loss may reduce household income by as much as $12,000 per year. It would seem that for some people, affording hearing aids is a “catch 22” – on the one hand, if they could hear better, they might earn more money and thus have the disposable income sufficient to purchase hearing aids. But without hearing aids, their earned income potential is negatively impacted. The good news in this recent survey is that people who get help for their hearing loss have the potential to regain up to 50 percent of that lost income.
While the debate about the cost of hearing aids will surely continue for some time, people with low income require assistance immediately and one notable charity is quickly stepping up to meet their needs. Helping lower-income Americans find access to quality hearing care and closing the gap between hearing loss and lost income are the goals of a new non-profit program called AUDIENT.
According to Mike Langhout, president of the AUDIENT program, “Our research clearly shows that one of every four Americans with hearing loss simply can’t afford the kind of help they need. And with the results of this new study demonstrating how income rises with the use of hearing aids, we see the AUDIENT program as one more step in helping people realize their share of the American dream.”
The AUDIENT program uses federal tax returns or Social Security benefit statements to qualify individuals to be fitted with new digital hearing aids at greatly discounted prices by a provider in a nationwide network of hearing healthcare professionals. To be eligible, income can be up to two and a half times greater than the federal guidelines for the national poverty level and no other asset test is required. For example, a family of one with an income of $23,500, and another $7,950 for each additional person in that family, is eligible for the new program.
Those interested should start by calling Audient’s toll-free, 877.AUDIENT, for income qualification and a referral to a local hearing healthcare provider. The process then continues much like a traditional trip to a hearing healthcare professional with a consultation and fitting. The aids are entry-level Oticon behind-the-ear digital aids with telecoil, directional microphone, multiple channels and listening programs. The cost for two hearing aids is approximately $1,000 which includes new custom ear molds, a 30-day trial period, shipping and handling and a one-year manufacturer’s warranty. Professional services for fitting and a number of follow-up visits are included in this cost.
The total cost is a fraction (approximately one-third) of what the same products and services would cost someone who is not participating in the AUDIENT program. To make it even more affordable, a financing plan with payments of $50 per month for 24 months (for two aids) is also available for those who qualify through GE Care Credit.
“The system was designed to make it as easy as possible for someone to find the kind of help they need,” says Langhout. “That’s why we’ve kept the qualifying process very simple and added a financing option as well.”
One of the long-held assumptions among the general public is that hearing loss is an “older person’s affliction.” But according to another survey by the BHI, almost two-thirds of those with hearing loss are still in the work force. Therefore, the AUDIENT program reaches out to a broad section of the American population, crossing age, ethnic and social boundaries in the process.
There is an equally broad history behind this new program of helping those in need. “For almost 40 years, the Northwest Lions Foundation for Sight & Hearing has been involved with helping people in the Seattle area find access to quality hearing care through our local Lions Hearing Aid Bank program which provides donated, refurbished hearing aids,” Langhout says.
“But while trying to figure out a way to expand into a new and different program, we discovered a large number of people – not just here in Seattle, but all across the nation – who fell into the gap above the national poverty level, yet below the normal means to afford better hearing.
“There are alternatives already in place for the lowest-income Americans which are not available to those just above that level. But these people need help just as badly. We also wanted them to benefit from new hearing aid technology, which is expanding at a pace unlike ever before. So we decided to get them the help they need. The result,” says Langhout, “is the AUDIENT program.”
The program, formally referred to as the AUDIENT Alliance for Accessible Hearing Care, began in January 2005, under the direction of Langhout, along with a small staff operating out of the Northwest Lions Foundation for Sight & Hearing offices in Seattle. Now the program has partners in 42 states and adds more hearing healthcare professionals daily.
According to Langhout, the incentive for hearing healthcare professionals to participate in the program is three-fold: to provide for underserved, low-income individuals in a timely manner; to receive additional marketing and advertising support from AUDIENT; and to earn community recognition for supporting the program. These incentives help to create long-term practice growth, something of great value to a practice owner, in light of recent stagnation in terms of sales in the industry as a whole.
“We are developing a wide range of marketing and advertising materials in support of the program,” Langhout explains. “These include patient brochures, patient referral cards, a series of public service announcements, press releases for the local media and other materials.”
A unique option in the continuum of those available to people with hearing loss, AUDIENT is a boon for a significant segment of the population with hearing loss.
Persons with hearing loss and hearing professionals interested in learning more about the AUDIENT program are encouraged to contact AUDIENT at 877.AUDIENT (877.283.4368) or by e-mail: info@audientalliance.org.
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