Hansaton’s Jerry Yanz Predicts Hearing Industry Will Get A Charge From Rechargeable Hearing Aids

If you can recharge your cell phone once and it will work for several days, why can’t you do the same thing with your hearing aids? Jerry L. Yanz of Hansaton will tell anyone within earshot why. More important, he will tell you how yesterday’s inadequate rechargeable hearing aids are being replaced by new rechargeables that actually work the way you do–all day long.

Until recently, the few rechargeable hearing aids on the market had significant limitations. Often their charge lasted less than a full day, so if you depended on them from morning to night, you were out of luck.

Many first-generation rechargeable hearing aids also suffered from the problem you had with early cell phone batteries — if you recharged them before they were completely empty, they would run out of gas quicker and quicker after each charge.

As a result, most hearing aids today still require non-rechargeable, disposable batteries. The batteries last a few days or, if you’re lucky, more than a week. But no matter how energy-efficient your hearing aids are, you end up buying dozens of batteries a year at up to a dollar a piece. It’s expensive, and disposing of so many dead batteries is wasteful and bad for the environment.

But there’s good news: Hansaton solved the problems of first-generation rechargeables to many users’ satisfaction more than a year ago when it introduced its new AQ 2G hearing aids featuring the AQ Custom ITE (in-the-ear) and AQ X-Mini RIC (receiver-in-the-canal) models. Jerry Yanz, PhD and director of audiology at Hansaton Acoustics, is a long-time hearing-industry evangelist who has been banging the drum for rechargeable hearing aids as a solution whose time has finally come. He recently co-authored an article in the Hearing Review telling you everything you need to know about the new rechargeable hearing aids.

The new Hansaton hearing aids keep their charge for 20 hours or longer and fully recharge in less than eight hours. Unless you sleep with your hearing aids turned on, you get to use them during all your waking hours. If you wear contact lenses and take them out only when you go to bed and pop them back in when you wake up, now you can follow the same routine with your hearing aids.

Other manufacturers with rechargeables already on the market as well as new entrants will be racing to catch up to with new rechargeables that deliver the mainstream features that Hansaton is promoting. When they do, customers will have a choice of fully functional rechargeables to compare against traditional hearing aids requiring disposable batteries.

If you are shopping for rechargeable hearing aids, Yanz and his co-authors suggest asking questions such as: How long will the charge last? Will the power really last all day? How long do they take to to recharge? Will they be fully charged even after a short night’s sleep? How long will the rechargeable batteries last before I have to replace them? Will the manufacturer replace them for me? And how convenient and easy is the recharging system?

When multiple manufacturers along with Hansaton are able to come up with satisfactory answers to all those questions, we may see the day when rechargeable hearing aids are as familiar as our rechargeable cell phones.

If You Were A Major Hearing Aid Company And Got A Half-Billion Dollar Windfall, What Would You Do With It?

If you were one of the world’s largest hearing-aid companies and suddenly received a half-billion dollar windfall, what would you do with it? That’s exactly the position GN Store Nord finds itself in today.

The parent of GN ReSound hearing aids and GN Netcom headsets will get 550 million Euros (approximately $530 million US) after prevailing in a long-standing civil dispute with Poland’s largest telecommunications company. In the Bloomberg News summary of the settlement, GN Store Nord executives indicated they will use the money primarily to make further investments in its ReSound hearing aid business, including potential acquisitions.

That amount of new money unleashed on a global industry that is less than $20 billion in total sales could have a major impact. But if GN ReSound just acquires another hearing-aid company, it won’t be the game-changer everyone is waiting for in a global industry that’s been stuck with less than five percent annual growth for the past decade. Here are some other areas where serious investment could get the hearing aid industry growing faster:

1. Develop More Affordable Hearing Aids: Most of the recent innovation by the global market leaders in the hearing aid business has been in the high end of the market, providing expensive features such as wireless communication to their highest paying customers. It would be great to see one of the five global leaders come up with a high-quality hearing aid for entry level users that retails for less than $1,000. Component prices are low enough to get there, but such a low price point will also require innovation and investment in the retail channel to speed up and lower the cost of fitting the hearing aids while maintaining high levels of customer service.
2. Streamline the Fitting Process: Making it faster and easier for audiologists and dispensers to fit hearing aids will enable them to serve more customers and offer lower prices, making up a lower profit margin with a higher volume of sales. Sonova’s Sona hearing aid brand is an attempt to lower stocking costs with an upgradeable product platform to accelerate the fitting process for customers with mild hearing loss, but so far it hasn’t had a huge impact on the overall market. Others are working on faster, easier and less invasive hearing tests that would provide better results than today’s lengthy procedure while lowering costs and making it easier to attract more hearing-aid users, especially at the entry level of the market. The industry could use a lot more investment in those kinds of experiments. But until they result in higher sales volumes, these experiments require long-term investment.
3. Integrate Seamlessly With Third-Party Peripherals: The major recent investments by the top hearing aid companies in wireless communication with peripherals to hook up your hearing aids with your Bluetooth phone or your TV audio have not yet delivered affordable solutions. Many of the wireless communications schemes are proprietary, locking the user into one manufacturer’s brand of hearing aids and commanding premium prices. More compatibility with industry standards and more integration with third-party peripherals and assistive listening devices will expand the market by serving more customers at more affordable prices. But it requires an investment in innovations that will lower costs, not just provide new or higher performance.

Those are only three areas where even a fraction of a half-billion-dollar investment could be a game changer for the hearing aid industry. Unfortunately, all those investments require a long-term focus and staying power, because results won’t be obvious overnight. So don’t be surprised if we see the kind of short-term investment activity that gets immediate results and keeps shareholders happy instead. A couple of quick acquisitions of smaller hearing aid companies could reduce overall back office costs, enlarge share of market, and improve profits in short order.

But if acquisitions and other short-term investments don’t result in new products, new thinking, or new ways of reaching and serving new market segments–especially the millions of entry-level consumers with mild untreated hearing loss–then we’ll see more of the same in the hearing aid industry. Big players will continue to get bigger by serving the high end of the market. Only by taking the risk to invest in new products and services that could broaden the market with more affordable solutions will we see a step increase in growth rates in the global hearing aid industry.

Starkey Laboratories Research Shows ‘Invisibility’ Is One Of Top Five Factors In Consumers’ Hearing Aid Choice

According to new market research, “invisibility” is one of the top five factors customers consider when buying a hearing aid, according to a presentation by a senior Starkey Laboratories executive yesterday at the 2012 Starkey Hearing Innovations Expo in Las Vegas. The research (Chart 1) reveals that consumers are less interested in what brand of hearing aid they are buying than other factors such as: 1) price; 2) sound quality; 3) form factor; 4) visibility/invisibility; and 5) customer service.

More than most other major global hearing aid manufacturers, Starkey Labs has focused development and marketing resources on the invisible hearing aid market over the past two years. Now the presentation by Dennis Van Vliet, Au.D., Starkey’s Senior Director of Professional Relations, explains why: the prized Baby Boomer market segment is far more receptive to “invisible” high-tech solutions than the previous generation of hearing aid users. In addition to the cosmetic appeal of a hearing aid no one knows you are wearing, today’s techno-savvy Boomers, who are attracted to high-tech gadgetry in general, are fascinated by the tiny new hearing systems that can pack more power and performance into a tiny package that sits deep within your ear canal than the huge behind-the-ear models that were the norm only a few years ago.

I’m not at the conference but received a copy of the presentation, which is packed with interesting new information, including a fascinating comparison (Chart 2) between consumers above 65 years old, who are generally averse to technology and less interested in fashion and an active lifestyle, versus Baby-Boom generation consumers aged 41 to 64 who are overwhelmingly interested in new tech solutions that fit in with an active lifestyle. My take on the data is that the Boomers are not put off by the “stigma” of being seen wearing hearing aids so much as attracted to slick new well-designed products that combine superior form with high-tech function.

Starkey’s “invisible” product line now includes the entry-level AMP hearing aids and its high-performance Soundlens products, both of which sit deep within the ear canal. Starkey’s Xino product family is a on open-fit, behind-the-ear, receiver in the canal (RIC) product that is so tiny it is also marketed in the “invisible” category. Starkey has marketed the AMP system aggressively as a first-time solution for users who would not otherwise want to wear hearing aids.

I’ve gotten comments on my previous posts about Starkey’s invisible hearing aid marketing campaigns from readers who say the company is playing into stereotypes about hearing aids as something to be ashamed of and something to hide from others. I’m sure there are plenty of consumers out there worried about the lingering stigma of having to use hearing aids, but I think something else is going on in the market as well. I like to think tech-savvy Baby-Boom consumers are attracted more to the positive aspects of well-designed hearing products that push the limits of miniaturization and performance than to the fact that they are afraid of being seen wearing hearing aids.

Richard Branson Gets Hands-On With Hearing Aids On Starkey Hearing Foundation Mission To South Africa

Media mogul, airline magnate, and high-altitude explorer Sir Richard Branson got hands-on with hearing aids on a recent Starkey Hearing Foundation mission to South Africa that the jet-setting celebrity philanthropist called “one of the most rewarding weekends of my life.”

“Seeing kids who had never been able to hear or speak doing so for the first time. Old men completely deaf dancing with joy at suddenly being able to hear again. Incredible,” Branson said in a post on his Virgin Companies blog entitled “Giving the Gift of Hearing.”

William Austin, founder of Starkey Laboratories and the Starkey Hearing Foundation, led the mission, which set up 500 hard-of-hearing South African citizens with hearing aids.

The Most Important Hidden Benefit Of Next-Generation Hearing Aids Is Noise Reduction, Not Amplification

It’s important to get the right levels of amplification in your hearing aids, especially in speech frequencies. Indeed, improved clarity of speech and high-frequency sounds is the first thing you notice when you are fitted with a good new pair of hearing aids. But an equally important feature–even if it’s one you never notice–is how well they reduce noise through digital (0r dynamic) noise reduction (DNR).

Everyone knows hearing aids amplify sound. But hearing-aid wearers also know that amplifying all sounds, including unwanted background noise, often makes it harder, not easier, to hear what people are saying. In fact, straining to understand amplified voices that compete with amplified background noise is one of the leading causes of hearing-related fatigue, which can be bad for your health.

The good news is that hearing-aid manufacturers have been steadily improving a combination of technologies over the past decade to deliver a big step increase in noise reduction. New sound processing software with sophisticated DNR algorithms are making full use of powerful digital signal processors (DSPs) to virtually eliminate background noise, such as air-conditioner fan noise in the conference room or road noise in the car, making it much easier to understand what people are saying. And much-improved directional microphones further shield you from unwanted noise while focusing on the voices of the people you are facing.

Taken together, these improved technologies make it much easier to understand speech in noise. That’s what I’m finding in my current search for a new set of hearing aids. I’ve recently been trying out two pairs from Liberty Hearing, a provider of hearing aids to Sam’s Clubs, and I’ve been wowed by the improvement in noise reduction over my previous four-year-old set of hearing aids.

When I stepped out into mid-day traffic in Manhattan, I switched on the “Noisy” program setting, and for once I didn’t feel assaulted by the traffic noise. When I took a ride on the Amtrak train, all the rumbling and track noise disappeared, and I could suddenly hear conversations of people three seats away. At home, a ventilation fan in the hood above our stove that usually drives me absolutely crazy seemed silent. And for the first time in years, I didn’t have to turn off my hearing aids when my wife and daughter turned on the blender to make smoothies.

And while the new hearing aids still don’t eliminate all the background chatter in a noisy restaurant, it’s easier to hear my dinner companions than with my previous hearing aids. Perhaps most important, I’ve been very aware of a reduction in the stress of wearing hearing aids. Because the new hearing aids are reducing the noises that I previously had to put up with to hear other people’s amplified voices, I am am experiencing far less hearing fatigue.

All the major hearing-aid manufacturers promote their digital noise reduction algorithms, and I hope to try out many of them. There’s an excellent review of the Starkey IQ sound processing software’s DNR feature on Steve Claridge’s HearingAidKnow site. Starkey IQ doesn’t just eliminate all the noise in gaps between a speaker’s words, but also reduces noise between syllables, which he is a big help in understanding speech. For more information, go to the Healthy Hearing overview of digital noise reduction authored by hearing-aid technology guru Mark Ross. He wrote it several years ago but it is still the best layman’s summary of DNR I’ve seen.

In the meantime, if you’re shopping for a new set of hearing aids, be sure to ask about their noise reduction feature. When you try them out, take a walk out on the street or through a crowded cafeteria. In addition to noticing all the new sounds you hear, you may also be pleasantly surprised at everything you don’t hear.

Panasonic Introduces New Receiver-In-The-Canal Hearing Aids Plus Wireless ‘Hearing Hub’

The Panasonic Healthcare Group has expanded its hearing-aid product line with the new R1-W Series of receiver-in-the-canal (RIC) hearing instruments that moves the company closer to the top ranks of global hearing-system manufacturers.

Among other things, the new product line features a Hearing Hub offering wireless connectivity with peripherals including Bluetooth phones and a transmitter that sends TV audio signals directly into the hearing aids.

Panasonic, which has been selling hearing aids in Japan for decades, only recently entered the North American market with its 4 Series and JZ Series open-fit and body-worn hearing aids. The new R1-W Series provides more power to address a broader range of users’ hearing problems including moderate-to-severe hearing loss. In addition to the wireless peripherals, other new features such include remote volume control and the ability to record voice memos such as personal reminders and phone numbers that can be played back through the hearing aids.

Although Panasonic is still playing catch-up to the world’s largest hearing-aid brands such as Phonak, Oticon, Widex, Starkey and ReSound, the new more powerful hearing aids plus wireless peripherals are a big step toward more parity with competitors who have made wireless communication a key selling point in their new products over the past year.

“With the new R1-W series, Panasonic has introduced a line of hearing instruments with sound quality design that equals or exceeds anything we have seen in the industry,” said Delain D. Wright, Director of Sales, Panasonic Healthcare Group, who called the R1-W series “the next phase” of Panasonic’s long-term plan to establish a major presence in the global hearing-aid market.

The Hearing Hub allows users to wirelessly connect the hearing instrument to Bluetooth®-compatible* mobile phones, landlines and a Panasonic Audio Transmitter, which plugs into a television’s audio-output port to transmit sound wirelessly into the R1-W Series hearing aids. And the remote control allows users to easily and discreetly adjust the volume level and programs of their hearing instruments.

“As a new player in the US hearing market and with our brand strength, we are finding that professionals are embracing our vision to deliver meaningful solutions to a broad segment of people who want to hear better,” Wright said.

Hearing-Aid Industry Unbound: Ten Trends To Follow In 2012 That Could Help Drive Double-Digit Growth

Every January, I jot down ten trends I plan to watch that will provide insights about how, why and when innovative technologies and new business ventures might unleash growth in the hearing-aid industry. In 2011, the global hearing-aid industry experienced something on the order of two percent growth. That’s a disappointing performance in a year when millions of Baby-Boom-generation adults in America alone had already lost so much of their hearing that they should have been racing to buy their first set of hearing aids. Why didn’t the market boom materialize in 2011, and will 2012 be any different? Here are ten trends I will be writing about where significant progress might help break that logjam in competition, innovation and growth:

1. Wireless Technologies: In 2011, all the major hearing-aid companies introduced one form or another of wireless communication between assistive listening devices and their hearing aids. Big announcements included streamers for broadcasting TV directly into receivers in your hearing aids, and synching Bluetooth receivers in your hearing aids with your cellphone. Wireless communication between your left and right hearing aids, to provide better stereophonic left-right balance and better location of sound, was also a big feature that the majors started to introduce. I’m expecting more of the same in 2012, along with the first reports of user experiences with these new technologies. Questions to be answered: Is their very high cost worth the benefit you get from them? Are they as easy to use as the manufacturers claim? Are they so much better than earlier, simpler, t-coil based solutions that they will find a big market in 2012?
2. Big Manufacturers Get Bigger: The big manufacturers–Sonova Group, William Demant Holdings, Siemens Hearing Instruments, GN Store Nord, and Starkey Laboratories–all seemed to be growing faster than the industry average in 2012. Those who were required to report their financial results were bullish about organic growth driven by new product introductions. In the global hearing industry we have a lot of vertical integration, with manufacturers controlling the design, development, manufacturing and distribution of their products, nearly to the point of sale, where they move their products mainly through networks of audiologists who usually resell no more than one or two brands, and who are very brand-loyal. The big players serve the top end of the market where customers can afford the multi-thousand-dollar price tag of a pair of hearing aids, and they are able to generate strong enough profits to continue funding development work that keeps them at the cutting edge of technology with leadership products. Expect more strengthening of the majors in 2012, with some interesting new high-end products and technologies.
3. Upstarts Challenge the Status Quo: While the big players at the high end of the market should continue to consolidate their positions, 2012 should also see many new upstarts with new technologies entering the mid- and entry-levels of the market with more affordable hearing-assistance products. Off-the-shelf DSPs (digital signal processors) and sound processing software are available, as are other components required to build hearing aids. In fact, the total cost of parts and basic software required to build a set of high-quality hearing aids runs into the hundreds, not thousands, of dollars. So there is room for new ventures with new product ideas to meet the huge unmet need for hearing assistance. I will be following and writing about as many of these interesting new ventures as I can.
4. Internet Hearing Aid Sales: There are already a number of companies selling programmable hearing aids direct from the manufacturer over the internet–Audicus, Audiotoniq, America Hears, HearSource, DIY Hearing Aids, hi HealthInnovations, and MD Hearing Aid are just a few. These vendors ask customers for a recent hearing test that will enable them to program the hearing aids to your profile before they ship them to you.  However, most consumers don’t already have a hearing test, and when they do get a hearing test it’s usually from an audiologist or dispenser ready to sell them a new set of hearing aids then and there. So the internet providers usually reach a small, discriminating market of experienced hearing-aid users who already have a copy of a recent hearing test, who know exactly what they want and, with the proper research, understand they can get quality hearing aids programmed and shipped directly from the manufacturer. But this small market segment may heat up in 2012. The reeason is that hi HealthInnovations, a subsidiary of UnitedHealth Group insurance company, is a new 800-pound gorilla in this marketplace who may change the competitive dynamics dramatically. Stay tuned.
5. Do-It-Yourself Hearing Tests: hi HealthInnovations asks consumers to take a web-based test that screens them for hearing loss. The test can show if some hearing assistance would be of help, and it also says it will let you know if your hearing is so bad you should head straight to an audiologist for a full personal workup. A number of other manufacturers provide hearing screening tests and there are even half a dozen hearing-test apps in the Apple iPhone store. But so far these are extremely rudimentary, and when asked, those offering the tests will tell you that if you suspect any serious issues with your hearing, you should schedule an appointment right away with a doctor, ENT, and/or audiologist. But there’s no reason that more sophisticated do-it-yourself hearing tests can’t be developed. Software on your personal computer is powerful enough and noise cancelling headphones can go a way toward replicating the silence of the padded booth in your audiologist’s office. I expect to see more sophisticated self-screening tests for hearing in 2012. While it will be many years before they can substitute for a full workup, I’m expecting they will help consumers know if any of the the growing number of off-the-shelf personal sound amplification products (PSAPs) now available on the market would provide the right level of amplification for their hearing loss. Which brings us to….
6. Over-the-Counter Hearing Aids/PSAPs: Since the FDA in the U.S. published guidelines for the sale of over-the-counter hearing aids that provide basic amplification, without requiring a hearing test, there have been a number of new entrants in the new market for Personal Sound Amplification Products (PSAPs). It’s been a slow build, because many of the new players are small and without any brand name recognition. Plus many of the products are built with inexpensive components and provide poor audio quality. But you can expect this picture to change in 2012, with the introduction of increasingly sophisticated PSAPs at a variety of price points. Look at my recent post on PSAP products introduced at the annual Consumer Electronics Show (CES) from big-name consumer audio companies like RCA and Acoustic Research, and you’ll get a glimpse of more to come.
7. Big-Box Retail: The “big box” stores such as Costco, Walmart, Sam’s Clubs, Sears and others have been selling hearing aids for quite a while. We didn’t see much news from this segment in the past year, and I suspect it’s because the product quality wasn’t superior. Very often the big box stores end up selling earlier generations of major manufacturers’ products, plus in the past support and fitting services could be spotty. I expect all this to continue changing for the better in 2012, as the stores upgrade their product lines and services, including in-house audiologists and/or more experienced dispenser/fitters, as well as the potential for private-label products that are just as good as the major hearing-aid brands, but at lower big-box-store prices. If Walmart, Costco and others get the product and service equation down correctly, they could bust open the mid-level of the market by providing excellent hearing aids for far less than the $2,000-3,000 per hearing aid price you often have to pay when you buy a major brand from an independent audiologist.
8. High-End Retail: When are we going to see hearing stores in high-end malls? Or name-brand hearing stores in downtown locations or small-town suburbs. There’s room for a retail option between the independent audiologist’s office and the big-box stores. I’d like to see an audiologist office with an attractive selection of hearing aids, headphones, assistive listening devices and other high-end hearing products under a glass counter in a store in the mall right next to my favorite supplier of eyeglasses. Will we see a major push into high-end retail in 2012? Don’t count on it. In 2010/2011 we saw HearUSA and the HearRX retail brand get swallowed up by Siemens Hearing Instruments when it failed to make timely payments on a line of credit. So the big money may stay on the sidelines when it comes to high-end hearing-aid retail ventures in 2012. But I’m leaving it on the list because, well, darn it, it’s an idea whose time has certainly come. So why not in 2012?
9. Induction Loops: 2012 may well be the Year of the Hearing Induction Loop. Or so thinks The New York Times. Its story last October on the proliferation of hearing loops in public auditoriums and other public spaces was definitive. Induction loop technology is based on the decades-old technology of induction through telecoils. It’s very simple and easy to install. However, while it’s cost-effective, it’s not inexpensive, and given that the hearing aid population is still smaller than it should be, and that not all hearing aids are equipped with telecoils, hearing loops haven’t yet taken the world by storm. There are a lot more of them in Europe than in the U.S., though, and according to the New York Times it’s only a matter of time before hearing loops become common throughout North America. So we can expect to hear more about this highly effective technology in 2012.
10. Invisible Hearing Aids: In 2010/2011 there was a lot of action in the “invisible hearing aid” market segment, and we’ll continue to see more. My personal feeling is, why make tradeoffs for the cosmetic appeal of hiding your hearing loss, when a visible open-fit BTE or other solution can do more and better for you? But it’s been so long since I worried about the cosmetics of the big hearing aids I use for my severe hearing loss that I’ve become somewhat insensitive to consumers’ concerns about the continuing stigma of wearing hearing aids. So I believe the manufacturers have been smart to market an “invisible” opiton to consumers who would not otherwise even consider hearing aids. At the same time, while I believe these invisible aids will grow into a strong market segment, I’m predicting you will see many consumers quickly get over the stigma of hearing assistance once they see what a positive difference it makes in their lives, and step up from invisible aids to open fit BTE’s that provide more functionality, such as wireless linking with their Bluetooth phones. So I’ll be writing more about “invisible hearing aids” in 2012.
11. Implants: Okay, this is an 11th bonus trend. Surgical hearing-assistance implants are becoming big business globally, and while they won’t replace hearing aids, they will certainly gain in the marketplace. Cochlear implant maker Applied Bionics had its share of problems in 2010/2011, with a broad product recall taking it out of the market for a time and reducing the number of global competitors in the cochlear implant market from three to two. But #2 AB is back, and following its acquisition by Sonova Group, it has the financial resources to compete toe-t0-toe with global leader Cochlear Limited. CI’s continue to improve, in the processing power of the behind-the-ear sound processors, in the software used to drive them, and in the number of electrodes stuffed into the implants themselves. So we can expect a lot of competition and innovation in this market in 2012. At the same time, we’ll see a lot of action in the bone-anchored hearing-aid (BAHA) market, to treat single-sided deafness. And we’ll see startups with unique middle-ear hearing-aid implants–including Envoy Medical’s Esteem implant and an interesting new implant on the wall of the cochlea from Otokinetics–continue to gain traction in the market.

I could easily add another 10 or 20 more items to this list of trends, but taken together, the 11 I’ve covered here will be enough to generate some real excitement in the global hearing-technology business in 2012. And with luck, we’ll see one or more hit the jackpot and start to find some big user acceptance and drive some substantial growth in the industry in 2012.

Panasonic’s New JZ Power Hearing System Brings Back “Body-Worn” Hearing Aids In A Sleek New High-Tech Package

Panasonic has given new life to a very old idea–”body-worn” hearing aids–with the new Panasonic JZ Power hearing system. But the new Panasonic product is unlike those original hearing aids of more than 50 years ago, which required a cumbersome sound processing unit hanging from the neck, wired to bulky, unattractive hearing aids that by today’s standards provided no more than very simple linear amplification.

The Panasonic JZ Power system is more like a sleek Apple iPod, with a nice set of high-tech ear buds that provide stereo sound amplified to your exact hearing profile. The next step up from the original Panasonic JZ hearing system, the Panasonic JZ Power has five channels instead of three and a frequency range from 200 to 6400 Hz, a major expansion in fitting range over the original JZ’s 220 t0 4300 Hz range.

Available in blue, black and silver, the Panasonic JZ Power is a palm-sized unit featuring an LCD screen, noise reduction, wind noise management, feedback management, left-right balance, a slide power switch and easily accessible volume control, and four “Scene Selector” program settings for standard, music, party and indoors listening environments. The stereo binaural headset (earphone with microphones) is designed to comfortably fit into the ear canal and stay in place for long hours of wear. The JZ Power also includes a rechargeable battery with a charging cradle for the main unit, which can also use commercial AAA alkaline batteries.

“Panasonic is committed to a series of unique hearing solutions using the JZ form factor,” said Delain D. Wright, Director of Sales, Panasonic Corporation of North America, Healthcare Group. “With the new JZ Power Panasonic can help an even broader segment of the hearing impaired who are challenged by the difficulty of managing traditional hearing instruments.”

Unbundling Hearing Aid Sales From Professional Services Catches On But Causes Confusion Among Audiologists

I got lot of mail about my last post on shopping for hearing aids and on how bundling of hearing exams into the end price of a hearing-aid sale can make consumers less likely to try multiple brands before buying.

As it happens, unbundling is a hot topic in the hearing aid business right now. With consumers and hearing-loss support associations advocating for more transparency in the hearing aid sales process, audiologists are looking for new approaches to fitting hearing aids and providing follow-up service. But breaking new ground by moving from the older tried-and-true approach can be a challenging and confusing task, especially as more hearing aid brands come on the market and patients start asking for more information about the differences.

“Unbundling…is not straightforward and interfaces with many other challenges in health care,” one audiologist wrote me. “There are many models, and many of us are going nuts trying to figure it out!”

The problem for the audiologist is getting paid for all the amount of care required in the fitting and follow-up. Charging one price for an expensive pair of hearing aids and providing comprehensive service before, during and after the fitting is an attractive model.

With bundled sales and service, the hearing aid manufacturer sells the hearing aids to the audiologist at a wholesale price, and the audiologist marks up the retail price to compensate for extensive service. The process is simple for consumers, who just have to pay for the hearing aids — when the process works well they get all the service they need. The downside, however, is that consumers don’t know exactly what they are paying for. They don’t know how much the hearing exam costs, how much the fitting costs, how much the earmolds (if needed) cost, and how much the hearing aids themselves cost. Very often the consumer can’t even name the brand or manufacturer of the hearing aids they are wearing, other than to say “They’re what my audiologist gave me.” It makes comparison shopping difficult.

Not knowing exactly what you are paying for is a common problem in healthcare generally. When your cardiologists says you need a stent, do you ask him what brand will be used? If health insurance pays part or all of the cost, do you ask what the cardiologist will charge, what the anesthesiologist will charge, or what your general practitioner charged for the referral? When consumers aren’t educated and fail to ask questions, it’s less likely there will be the kinds of comparisons that lead to more choice and lower prices.

With most hearing aids not covered by insurance, and with demand growing from aging baby boomers losing their hearing at a predictable rate, audiologists are hearing a lot more of these kinds of questions. And many are starting to respond.

One audiology practice, the UNC Hearing and Communications Center at the University of North Carolina, is pioneering the new practice of completely unbundled hearing aid fitting, service and sales, with as much transparency in pricing as possible. Two audiologists from the Center, Barbara Winslow Warren, Au.D., and Stephanie Sjoblad, Au.D., wrote an excellent article about their approach for HLAA’s Hearing Loss Magazine. It’s a must-read for anyone trying to understand the ins and outs of unbundling. Click here–Unbundling of Hearing Aid Costs– to download it.

As with all markets, caveat emptor — buyer beware — should be the watchword for anyone embarking on the quest for better hearing. Perhaps the best advice I got among the emails that came in was from Dennis Hampton, Ph.D., editor of Hearing HealthCare News:

I think it’s a good idea to remember that a person with a hearing loss should be “shopping” for someone who will be their hearing care provider, not for hearing aids.  Follow-up care is the critical factor in coping with hearing loss….  There are excellent hearing aid products out there (many with far more technology and bells/whistles than are necessary), and the top products are more similar than different.  But the range of professionalism and quality of follow-up care is far greater—and that is what makes the difference.

I couldn’t agree more that anyone who fears they have suffered some hearing loss should get a good evaluation from a certified hearing health care profesional. And I also couldn’t agree more that it’s in your interest to get a second, third, and even fourth opinion, when you are deciding what kind of help to get for your hearing–and from whom. And finally, the more you know about what products are out there, and which brands and manufacturers have products with the features and performance you need, the better prepared you will be to ask the right questions.

As the old saying goes, “An educated consumer is the best customer.”

Shopping Around For A Pair Of Hearing Aids Is Harder Than You Think, Starting With The Hearing Exam

Shopping around for a pair of hearing aids is harder than you think, starting with the hearing exam. Getting a hearing test resulting in an accurate audiogram is easy enough. The test only takes twenty minutes or so, and when administered by a trained audiologist or licensed hearing aid fitter, the result is usually an accurate map of your hearing profile. It’s the first essential step in getting fitted for hearing aids programmed to precisely match your levels of hearing loss at all frequencies.

But because in nearly all cases hearing exams and other audiologists’ services are bundled with the end sale of a pair of hearing aids, the hearing test very often is the first step in a sales process that applies subtle pressure on the consumer to follow through with the purchase of a pair of expensive hearing aids from the provider administering the initial test. People buying hearing aids don’t try out as many brands as consumers in other markets, lessening competition that would otherwise drive product innovation, price competition, and faster market growth.

The process should be like getting your eyes checked by an ophthalmologist, who you pay for an exam and who then gives you a prescription for eyeglasses that you can use at any retailer stocking a variety of manufacturers’ eyeglasses to choose from. Instead, when you go to an audiologist, the usual process is to get your hearing test for free, then a prescription for the one brand of hearing aids that audiologist sells, with an immediate invitation to try and then buy those hearing aids. The difference is that with eyeglasses, exams and prescriptions are usually unbundled from the sale of the eyeglasses, whereas most audiologists bundle their professional services with the price of the hearing aids they sell.

Bundling services with product sales limits consumer choice because audiologists have a strong incentive to move the consumer quickly to purchase of the manufacturers’ hearing aids they stock. It’s uncomfortable for a consumer who has gotten a “free” hearing exam to stop the process then and there, ask for a copy of the results, and use the audiogram to shop around for the best aids they can find. So many consumers fail to try different brands of hearing aids, and competition in the market is constrained.

Therefore, unbundling of hearing health services from the sale of hearing aid products in the hearing-health supply chain would increase competition, opening the way for more product choice at a broader range of price points. As in other industries where competition increases, growth in the hearing device market would accelerate as more products, including lower priced products, reached a much larger available market of users.

Several forces are at work that may dramatically disrupt this status quo in the hearing aid supply chain. First, the Hearing Loss Association of America (HLAA) came out in favor of unbundling hearing aid sales from professional services as part of its Campaign to Make Hearing Aids Affordable. Meanwhile, there are a growing number of manufacturers offering lower priced hearing aids programmed at the factory to match audiograms sent in by users who got their hearing tested but did not buy their hearing aids from the professional who administered the exam. And third, hi HealthInnovations, a newly formed subsidiary of the huge UnitedHealth Group insurance company, has started selling more affordable hearing aids direct to consumers who take a simple test that’s available on the hi HealthInnovations web site. In the coming year, we may see a new distribution channel grow in the hearing aid industry, offering more a la carte services unbundled from the final sale of hearing aids.

As I embark on my shopping expedition for a new pair of hearing aids, I will be writing about my experiences with bundled and unbundled hearing aid sales. One way or the other, I plan to try out as many manufacturers’ hearing aid models as I can. And I’ll write about my experiences with both approaches to hearing aid sales and service.

Next Page »