Hearing Aid Question

Roadwarrior

Roadwarrior

Member
Having adult life long hearing problems I bought a pair of aids from CostCo 7 years ago. Price was <$1,500.00. Batteries are only good for 4 days or less & somewhat costly. I've had them cleaned once a year but now with the prices in free fall from the latest government rules (no prescription, no exam) they can be had for less than $200, more if you opt for the name brands. Rechargeable devices. Question is, has anyone bought and tried them? Would you recommend them?
 

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Roadwarrior said:
Having adult life long hearing problems I bought a pair of aids from CostCo 7 years ago. Price was <$1,500.00. Batteries are only good for 4 days or less & somewhat costly. I've had them cleaned once a year but now with the prices in free fall from the latest government rules (no prescription, no exam) they can be had for less than $200, more if you opt for the name brands. Rechargeable devices. Question is, has anyone bought and tried them? Would you recommend them?
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I guess no senior here has hearing aids or opinions, kind of unusual for this forum. I'll take my ball & go home.
 
It has not been long since you posted your question, please have patience, someone will answer. I can't give advice, right now I think I hear too well. I have migraines and hear constant noise because of it. I need to wear earplugs to shut out some of it.
 

Don't know about cosco hearing aids but bought mine thru my medicare advantage plan. Phonak brand custom fit to my ear canal 6 yr. rechargeable battery life. They work all day then I charge them at night.

A bit expensive if you decide to look up pricing.
 
About a year ago I got my first hearing aids, Resound ( https://www.resound.com/en-us/ ) which I understand are the same as Costco sells. They cost me about $2k, don't remember exactly. I got them from an audiologist who matched Costco's prices, after I showed them to him.

Nothing to compare to, they are the only hearing aids I have ever had. The do improve my hearing, the quality more than volume, now I can hear higher pitched sounds I could not before. They are rechargeable and that seems to work fine for me, never have run them down in one day, no matter how long.

One thing I found irritating, I travel a lot and needed the portable charger, about $200... way more than it should have been.

Best of luck with it.
 
I've bought 2 sets of hearing aids from Costco, the last set was bought before the new hearing aid rule was in effect.....I know nothing on the new rule but I'm happy with Costco Hearing aids mainly because they'll repair or replace for several years free of charge, the first set was 5 years, I think this last set is 3 years....With this last set, dog chewed up one, they gave me a new one free no questions, also I dropped one on tile floor and it knocked a hole in it, repaired free of charge.
 
Thanks for the responses, I found a listing on both Amazon & Walmart for the same brand of rechargeable aids. The price for the cheapest was $59 a pair on both with free shipping. Guaranteed for one year.

Years ago I bought TV Ears from one of those 'As Seen on TV' numbers. They worked well with the TV but would mute the sound making it impossible for others to enjoy. They were as much or more than the current prices on 2 aids today ($75). I broke them yanking them off my head when anyone wanted to talk. I now use the Costco brand (going on 7 years) but have just recently got a replacement battery supply from Amazon, so when the last one beeps I'll probably order the cheapest aid for a test run.

$59 makes them almost disposable if they fail after a year. The battery supply should last a little more than 3 months. 3 month supply of batteries is $15 / 3 months = $5 a month. The one year guaranteed price of the aid is $60 / 12 = $5 a month. Sixes!
 
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I just saw this post.
Hearing aids have improved greatly in the last five years!

Hearing devices or amplifiers have been sold for many years by mail, online, and in stores. They amplify sound, usually in all frequencies, which most people don't need. However, they have also improved and some can now be programmed to different frequencies via a phone app. That doesn't mean though, that they can be programmed specifically to your loss.

With the Over The Counter Hearing Aid Bill which was recently passed genuine programmable hearing aids can be sold over the counter to consumers without having to go through a licensed dispenser.
Its important to note that they are recommended for mild to moderate hearing losses, not moderate to severe or severe to profound losses.
The cost is competitive for just the hearing aids themselves.

But first, anyone that suspects they have hearing loss is recommended to have a thorough hearing test. Part of that test should include ruling out loss from excessive wax or problems in the middle ear that may require alternate treatment possibly in addition to aids.
If you have had dizziness, severe tinnitus, sudden hearing loss, sudden loss in one ear, you need to see an ENT. In fact, if you experience severe sudden loss you should go to the emergency room.

With all this, if you are an experienced hearing aid user and can use a phone app, you may be able to program and use OTC aids without much problem. I'm sure a lot of them have online support.
If you are new at this you may want to go to an audiologist or licensed specialist working in retail such as Costco or some of the well known retail stores. Try to find someone experienced and a particular store with a good reputation. Word of mouth is great here.
They can explain hearing loss to you. There is so much more to it then just amplifying sound. Hearing losses are different for different people. They can also show you how to use hearing aids along with how to clean and service them. Most come with some amount of aftercare and service included. Yes, it can be expensive but for those who can afford it, it's available.

However, if you have had a good hearing test, are tech savy and can program the aids yourself, don't have problems with ear wax, (which is the most common reason aids aren't working), then go for it!
 
I should have added: If you have a ten year old grandson that can program them for you, your good! 😁

Also, when I say go for it, I mean the OTC, not the ones sold in the back of magazines. They say FDA approved but that means approved as an amplifying device. They are very tricky in their advertising. There are lawsuits pending because they were leading people to believe they were the approved Over the Counter the aids.
 
Roadwarrior said:
Having adult life long hearing problems I bought a pair of aids from CostCo 7 years ago. Price was <$1,500.00. Batteries are only good for 4 days or less & somewhat costly. I've had them cleaned once a year but now with the prices in free fall from the latest government rules (no prescription, no exam) they can be had for less than $200, more if you opt for the name brands. Rechargeable devices. Question is, has anyone bought and tried them? Would you reco
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When I was working (7-8 years ago), I also had to buy a pair of hearing aids ($2,000 + ) that ran on external batteries I had to purchase. After I got used to wearing hearing aids, they did help me a lot with phone calls and separating conversations in places where multiple people were talking.

Now in retirement, I really did not want to continue to buy batteries and the older aids need frequent adjustment visits to keep them working well for me. So, I shopped around and decided to go to Costco and purchase a pair of Phillips hearing aids. They have rechargeable batteries built in. I have had these for a few weeks now and they work very well. I charge them at night and they hold the charge until I go to bed. I can hear as well as I did when I first got my original aids. Really, no problems so far.
 
If you have hearing problems, get hearing aids, if they can help with your problem. Nothing more irritating than someone with poor hearing that will not consider wearing a hearing aid.
Of course, those who have hearing problems that cannot be improved with hearing aids, I am not speaking about you, as I have great sympathy for them.
 
I'm sorry I bought hearing aids last year at this time and cost $3000. A racket. Beltone. Not worth it-- Not to me, but the ear MD and audiologist talk like it is necessary. It isn't. I have very small ear canals, so they are hard to fit. The truth is they will not help with thosewho talk very fast, foreign accents and mumblers. Does help with higher voices, high sounds, TV. I dont wear mine. They tell you that your brain needs recharging...no--their brains need recharging. They say that aids help prevent alzheimers. So they sell it with fear, but it is not true for everyone. At least I can hear dialogue in movies and theatre now. I wanted a refund!
 
I know my hearing is better in my left ear than in my right, but adequate to get along without an aid. I punctured the eardrum in my right ear about 15 years ago trying to clean the outer ear canal. Deafness seems to be endemic around here. Almost everyone I know age 60 or older wears hearing aids and with some people it doesn't seem to help them very much. They have in both ears and you could blast an air horn next to their head and they wouldn't hear it. They are always fiddling with them and then the devices start squealing. I find it difficult to deal with deaf people - I keep repeating to them, until I finally have to shout, then they act offended.

I do experience a fair amount of mondegreens like when a furniture store was having a urine sale when it was a year end sale, or the energy drink commercial that sounded like "after your 34th cup of coffee, you might get indigestion" when it was your third of fouth cup.

Did you know there are different types of hearing loss?
https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/conditions-and-diseases/hearing-loss/types-of-hearing-loss
 
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An acquaintance just paid CA$6200 for hearing aids. They only guarantee them for 4 years, because the technology will be obsolete. She did have a unique problem so I hope that’s why they’re so expensive. I know I should go and get checked out. Dread the thought. Was considering Costco but it’s not convenient.
 
My mom was just tested and the hearing center recommended the Phonak Audeo L30 rechargeable. Out of pocket cost would be just under $2,400 for a pair. Does this sound reasonable? Anyone with this particular model have any issues with them? My mom really needs hearing aids and has been fighting getting them for years but now that she will be moving into a senior community, she really needs to get them so she can hear people around her.
Thanks!
 
My original post above covered my experience with wearing the very expensive hearing aids vs. wearing good quality ones available now from Costco and other sources. The hearing aids are identical except the expensive ones I had ran on batteries. The batteries were costly in the long-run and a pain to use. My newer Costco hearing aids are rechargeable. I simply put them away in the charger at night when I go to bed.... easy and they work as well, better if I consider the recharging, as my grossly expensive ones.

Don't get sucked in on the expensive ones. Costco does a custom fitting and set up on a PC exactly like I had on my expensive ones...! Spending thousands of dollars on hearing aids is a real mistake...!
 
hearlady said:
The Over the Counter ones are supposed to help with the cost but new wearers need fitting and guidance. Otherwise they're not happy and feel they've wasted their money.
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Many competitively priced providers include fitting and setting them up with you on a PC, just like the guys who push the very expensive hearing aids. I have had both and they were both the same.... except the ones I got at Costco (years later), were thousands of dollars less in price!
 
Timewise 60+ said:
My original post above covered my experience with wearing the very expensive hearing aids vs. wearing good quality ones available now from Costco and other sources. The hearing aids are identical except the expensive ones I had ran on batteries. The batteries were costly in the long-run and a pain to use. My newer Costco hearing aids are rechargeable. I simply put them away in the charger at night when I go to bed.... easy and they work as well, better if I consider the recharging, as my grossly expensive ones.

Don't get sucked in on the expensive ones. Costco does a custom fitting and set up on a PC exactly like I had on my expensive ones...! Spending thousands of dollars on hearing aids is a real mistake...!
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I am on my second pair of Costco hearing aids. They've been great. Costco is a great cost saving option- great audiologists, terrific service. Of course a year ago we moved to a place with out any Costco- the nearest one is an hour away! Luckily I'm not having any issues but when I do it will be quite a schlep.
 

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