Is There Financial Aid for Hearing Aids?

When the time comes that you are ready to purchase a hearing aid, you might wonder if it is affordable. While you may ponder this question, there are additional methods to help you pay for a hearing aid; it's important to find out if you can qualify for any financial assistance. As hearing aids are generally not covered by standard medical insurance, there are insurers that offer certain plans which might cover hearing tests and hearing aid fittings. But where can you go to get this important assistance? Let's give you a breakdown of how you may be able to get financial aid for hearing aids.

Getting the right coverage

While most health insurers do not provide coverage for hearing aids as a rule, it's important for each individual to check their plan because there may be a small stipulation that can help with some financial assistance. While you may discover you have insurance for hearing aids, the coverage will depend on certain factors.

For example, a health plan may only give you a certain amount of money towards purchasing a hearing aid, and this may depend on where you purchase it from. It's likely that you will have to go from a contracted provider rather than one of your choice. In addition, certain health plans may only pay a certain amount towards the cost of a hearing aid, leaving you to come up with the rest of the funds yourself.

While each plan is different, it's also important to check out the coverage based on your location. Currently, in the South Carolina area, there is no insurance plan mandate for hearing aids. But legislation can change all of the time, so something that you may not be covered for now may very well be in the future, which is why you need to keep on top of matters with your insurance company. When speaking to an insurance company, you need to have a list of questions that will help you, including the following:

• What is the health plan benefit for hearing aids?
• Do I have to use certain hearing aid providers?
• If the health plan has a benefit or allowance, can the provider bill the health plan directly?
• Is the benefit limited to certain types of hearing aid? 
• Are there any criteria for coverage? For example, if your hearing loss is to a certain degree.

The places to get financial assistance for hearing aids

While there is no direct coverage in South Carolina, that doesn't mean you do not have insurance coverage. It's important to check with your employer or your benefits coordinator. But there's a lot of healthcare systems and government bodies that provide financial assistance including:

• Medicare
• Departments of Human Service
• State Department of Rehabilitation
• Department of Vocational Rehabilitation
• State and Private Assistive Technology Loan Program
• Benevolent Protective Order of Elks of the USA
• Bill Daniels Center for Children’s Hearing
• Miracle Ear Children’s Foundation
• Disabled Children’s Relief Fund
• Dorothy Ames Trust Fund
• Easter Seals
• First Hand Foundation
• Gift of Hearing Foundation
• Graceful Sounds
• Hear Now
• H.E.A.R. Project
• Ear Foundation
• Carecredit
• Air Force Aid Society
• Apha One (Independent Living Center)
• Helpcard
• Health Insurance Cover
• Peoplepledge

These organizations have specific stipulations. While Medicare is on this list, you may only qualify if you have a Medicare Advantage Plan. There are other charitable organizations some of which are listed above to help depending on the criteria you meet. Some require you to be over the age of 65 or have a disability and some need to have proof of low-income status.

Acquiring financial aid for hearing aids can be a minefield. But there are ways to get you funding or, at the very least, point you in the right direction to get hearing aid payment assistance. But the most important way to get the help for your individual needs would be from a hearing professional such as a hearing instrument specialist (HIS).

Here at Affordable Hearing, we can point you in the right direction to get the hearing aid you need. Having a hearing aid can make all the difference in your quality of life. If you believe you do not have the financial capacity to get a hearing aid you can get in contact with us for more information.

To learn more about Affordable Hearing you can contact us at Irmo: 803-749-6017, or Orangeburg and Santee: 803-531-6403 and we will provide you with the assistance you need.