Hearing Mojo: How To Buy A Hearing Aid If You've Never Had One Before

How To Buy A Hearing Aid If You've Never Had One Before

There are a million ways to buy hearing aids these days. You can buy them through the mail or on the web, you can go to an audiologist, or you can visit a professional dispenser who is a certified hearing professional. You can even go to a kiosk in a department store. And it's a confusing process. Higher costs don't always mean the right product or the right fit. Lower prices don't always mean a worse product. With so many choices, the operating principal is "Buyer beware!" In my recent search for a new set of hearing aids, I discovered some of the latest and greatest information sources for first-time buyers who need authoritative information to get them off on the right foot. Click on the link below to the full article for some helpful hints and useful resources.

Once you've learned the ropes, it's possible to get good hearing aids for less money from mail order suppliers or retailers. But before you embark on such an adventure you should know the ropes. And because fitting a hearing aid is such an individual proposition, I always recommend that people buying an aid for the first time go to an audiologist who will work with them over time to get the best results. Even then, you should arm yourself with enough information to start asking the right questions.

A good first stop is the Federal Trade Commission, which provides "Sound Advice on Hearing Aids" to potential buyers while reviewing the regulations on hearing aid dispensers. The information will help you sort out the legitimate vendors who follow the rules from those trying to make a quick buck. A second stop is the Hearing Loss Association of America (formerly Self-Help for Hard-of-Hearing people, or SHHH), which provides a gold mine of information about hearing loss and hearing assistance. I recommend purchasing their Consumer's Guide to Hearing Aids available on their website for $4.25. Next you will want to visit the AARP website (no matter what your age) which provides several articles on hearing loss with tips on how to buy a hearing aid, along with links to other helpful sites. Another stop should be the Better Hearing Institute, which provides its own survey of hearing-loss information as well as advice on purchasing hearing aids, with more links to other information sources. Finally, for a detailed look at the features and functions of many of the leading hearing-aid brands, go to HearingPlanet, a mail order supplier of hearing aids which publishes an excellent comparison chart. You can download it for free (you'll get an email and perhaps a phone call from a sales representative), or view it directly on their website.

No matter how much information you arm yourself with, nothing can replace common sense. Ask for "try-before-you-buy" consideration, shop around for a dispenser or audiologist who treats you like a person rather than a customer,, and spend as much time as you can spare learning what questions to ask. You'll not only avoid spending more than you should,, but more important, you will end up with better hearing. Good luck!

Posted by David at 06:28 PM on Feb 21, 2006 in HEARING AIDS, MY STORY

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Comments

I have had meniere's disease for many years. I have profound hearing loss in my left ear, which an aid won't help. Now at age 75, I am beginning to get age-related hearing loss in my right ear, so I am researching aids. One audiologist told me that I should not get an aid for my good ear, because it might cause hearing loss in that one. Has anyone else ever heard of this? Thanks for your help

Posted by: carol | April 18, 2007 01:43 PM

I'm surprised you haven't written anything about Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) as a resource for hearing aids and assistive listening devices. The only criteria for people with hearing loss to receive help from VR is that the "... person has a hearing loss that is causing substantial impediments with their ability to get or keep their job." (A quote from a VR Counselor's e-mail).

VR helped me tremendously while I was pursuing my undergraduate degree. After I graduated and was having a lot of difficulty hearing my Library customers, VR bought me a pair of Siemens hearing aids, and just last month they purchased Phonak's SmartLink which I use everyday in my career - I'm a Librarian with a hearing loss that ranges from mild in the low frequencies to profound in the high frequencies, and VR has always come through for me. As a single mom, I cannot afford to pay for expensive technology, and VR has truly been a Godsend!

Give Vocational Rehabilitation some much-needed PR!

Posted by: Cynthia Dixon | October 8, 2006 07:51 PM

thank you very much for your help. You guys 40680 rock, thanks again.

Posted by: Tuki Medaber | September 15, 2006 10:29 AM

Oh man. I've just been looking through some of those, and they don't give enough information. It's critical to have that audiogram, because different hearing aids have different capacities for sound amplification. In my case, there are only a few BTE models powerful enough to work for me. But at hearing planet for example, I could easily wind up thinking any of their BTE hearing aids were good enough. Except that they're not. Most of the digital ones don't have enough oomph, I have to use analog. This really is not a DIY project (although info is always a good thing to have). It's best to find a professional who knows what they are doing and can advise you about the sorts of hearing aids that will best compensate for your loss.

Posted by: Anonymous | July 5, 2006 02:27 AM

I don't know how this is handled from state to state (or what state you are in) but in California, you cannot buy a hearing aid unless you have a full audiogram taken by an audiologist. (They had too many senior citizens being taken advantage of by door to door salesmen, when all they really needed most of the time was a little ear cleaning...or so I'm told). In any case, I've had to jump through those hoops to get my hearing aids every single freaking time, even though I've worn them from childhood.

So the way it works in CA, anyone selling hearing aids is also licensed to do audiograms or partnered up with a clinic to do so. You'd never be able to order one out of a magazine. Even if you go to Sears here, you've still got to go thru the audiogram route. I don't mind too much since it probably keeps the riff-raff down, but I do kind of wish there was an exemption for folks like me.

Sorry to be so chatty. Just found your blog while searching on bluetooth adapters for hearing aids and found this blog.

Posted by: Anonymous | July 5, 2006 02:19 AM

I'd go to a professional.

Posted by: First aid nurse | April 21, 2006 06:27 AM