OTC or use Medicare advantage Truhearing benefits

If you search the site you’ll probably find your complaint common.
Hearing aids are not glasses. You have to give your brain time to adjust. I know that sounds nuts. I use to think it was. I’m going to give you the secret to hearing aids. Finding a really good audiologist to work with you.
I would take the advice and try Costco. You have six months to find out if they are for you.
So really you have nothing to lose and everything to gain.

We have a Costco membership- and I just noticed that our BCBS Medicare advantage has a heating aid benefit but you have to use truhearing and only buy the brands they offer. I’ll check out Costco. I don’t think I need the $3,000 hearing aids but who knows.

I used TruHearing through a Medicare Advantage plan and am quite pleased. There is a post titled Medicare advantage (by Aetna) & hearing aids ongoing care where I wrote more details of how the process went and the brands TruHearing has.

Perhaps that will be of use for your decision,
Paul

I think the steps are
(1) get an updated hearing test. Get a copy
(2) if your hearing loss is mild to moderate then sure, try an OTC. If you do, please ensure you can return them with no fees. If it is not mild to moderate , you will need professional advice. (3) Based on what you said, Costco is the best option if you don’t want to spend more than $1600 and your hearing loss is not mild to moderate .

OTCs are only helpful for mild to moderate hearing loss, hence my recommendation to do a bit of homework before spending money on them .

If your previous hearing aids were not helpful, most likely they were not programmed correctly.

I also have insurance where I work that has a heating aid benefit. It’s through whatever Audiologist that was on their list. By the time I paid my out of pocket costs, they only would pay up to $3,000. One of my colleagues used our insurance and still paid $1,500 to an audiologist and he chose the middle pair of hearing aids from their list. He had a 30 day trial period. Costco, charged me $1,599 for the Jabra Enhanced Pro 20 hearing aids in December 2024. They come with a 180 day return policy. In May, I upgraded them to the new Jabra Enhanced Pro 30s at only $100 more. That was because the price had gone up. I have been extremely happy with Costco’s service, and their hearing aids are all top of the line models.

As was previously mentioned, hearing aids take a lot of time for you to acclimate your brain to them. Having a 180 day return policy, allows you more time to become accustomed to them and find out if they are working for you. If not you may return them and try another of their four brands.

Well,
I am not yet on Medicare, but my mom was. The first thing that I would do is have your doctor refer you to an ent and audiologist. Looks like you have advantage so this should be covered and hearing test by a referred audiologist. My mother had advantage and it offered some benefit and it was through True Hearing. I do not recall what the name of the aids were but they were rebadged Siemens/Sivantos Pure Binex low for$400/pair and High for $800/pair. Her True Hearing was through a Hear USA and the Audiologist that I vetted for her was AuD, MA CCCA and was competentent and performed REM on her Low. and she was very happy.

My happening was that my current Blue Cross HMO through my wife’s allows $2500/ear. I ended up going carte blanche through audioligist and got Sphere I90 last week. My priors,while I was working were through Aetna and they gave $3000/pair but you were forced to go through Hearing Care Solutions who then funneled to third party "fitter. These were Lumity Lfie i90. that were $2400 plus Molds. My prior were Costco KS 9’s. New one has properly reprogrammed the Lumity and the spheres and my cost was what I would end up at Costco out of pocket.

Moral is that maybe see a doctor first to see your ear condition, etc and an Audiologist in Medicare by your doctor, then see what Medicare advantage contributes, if anything… No commitments on any but can put you in a good position to get these fit correctly to help you more than in the past. Process I have used on last three and what mom did. The Senn’s are rebadged Phonak Lumity aids. Step down from the sphere’s and still real strong technology.

@MartinGale said:

The main disadvantage or advantage, depending on your viewpoint, is only Costco can adjust your hearing aids, unless you decide to become a do it yourselfer.

Costco HAs were locked at one time, and only Costco could adjust them. Now, any ReSound dealer has the ability to service Jabras, and I believe any Signia dealer has the ability to service Rextons. They’re unlikely to service HAs they didn’t sell, but they can provide service, if they choose to.

Every so often, someone posts that they can’t get to the audi who prescribed their HAs, and no other audi will provide service, even for a fee. My Jabras (Costco) were sold in Illinois and have been serviced in Massachusetts and Nova Scotia (where the HA center replaced a receiver under warranty)…

If you buy from a private clinic, you’re likely to have trouble getting service for your HAs if you move or if the practice closes or if you need help while travelling, If you buy from Costco, you can get service as long as you can get to a Costco, at least in the US and Canada.

IOW, whatever HA one buys, fitting is either done by the seller or the user.

Because of Costco’s success selling hearing aids, Sam’s Clubs also got into the business for their members. However, the hearing aids they sold were locked. Sadly for their members who purchased them, they are now stuck with them as they are, because Sam’s Club closed all their hearing aid centers and no one else can adjust them. I don’t think Costco will get out of the hearing aid business because they are the second largest purveyor of hearing aids in the U.S. after the VA, (Veterans Administration). Additionally, Costco also sells OTC hearing aids.

I’m not 100% sure, but I think TruHearing, hearing aids are also locked so only they can adjust them.

Lucky for you. However, the hearing aids they provide are locked. When they shut down those locations, you will be stuck.

From the AuD: TruHearing are unlocked. Any provider for the particular brand can adjust them. (TruHearing has several brands.) I’d certainly verify that this is still valid before purchasing.
Paul

@Flyboybob - you are talking about HAs from Sam’s Club being locked, right?

I think somehow @OcramSagev and @PJB12 may have taken this to mean you were saying that TruHearing HAs are locked.

Thanks for mentioning the confusion, AtillaDaPun.

At then end of the reply, Flyboy made a wise point that maybe TruHearing were locked, but he wasn’t sure. That’s where my reply as directed. To give an answer to Flyboy’s proposal.

But, I had to put in a caveat- Are sure to check before buying just in case things have changed. (I also don’t know about DIY programming with TruHearing devices. Never asked.))