Despite gradual improvements in hearing aid insurance coverage across the United States, millions of Americans continue to lack guaranteed benefits, with older adults facing some of the most persistent gaps, according to new research published in JAMA Otolaryngology–Head & Neck Surgery ....
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Discussion
Signed responses from readers of the wire.
No immediate change to clinical protocols is warranted, but audiologists should be prepared to counsel older adult patients on out-of-pocket costs and alternative funding pathways, as insurance coverage for this group is trending downward.
Declining hearing aid coverage for older adults — the population with the highest prevalence of hearing loss — widens an already critical access gap and has downstream implications for untreated hearing loss, cognitive health, and clinic utilization.
- 01U.S. hearing aid insurance coverage has improved for children but declined among older adults, per a JAMA Otolaryngology–Head & Neck Surgery study.
- 02Millions of older adults remain without guaranteed hearing aid insurance benefits.
- 03The divergence in coverage trends across age groups highlights systemic inequities in hearing healthcare access.
- 04Findings may inform advocacy efforts for federal or state-level hearing aid coverage mandates.
- 05Clinics serving older adults should anticipate continued financial barriers affecting patient uptake.
U.S. hearing aid insurance coverage has improved for children.
studysupportedHearing aid insurance coverage has declined among older adults in the U.S.
studysupportedMillions of older adults are left without guaranteed hearing aid insurance benefits.
studysupported- Journal
- JAMA Otolaryngology–Head & Neck Surgery
- Publication type
- research_article
- Evidence level
- 2b
- Population
- U.S. population across age groups, with focus on children and older adults with hearing loss
- Intervention
- Hearing aid insurance coverage policies across age groups over time
- Comparator
- Coverage rates in children vs. older adults across study period
Primary outcomes
Prevalence of hearing aid insurance coverage among children; Prevalence of hearing aid insurance coverage among older adults