Bundled vs Unbundled Hearing Aid Prices

I thought one of the professionals might know more. However, I think what she is asking about is the one I was talking about, the Widex “Menu” which is more flexible in setup for each individual’s needs and preferences. How much does each add-on cost in comparison to the basic price?

Example-- most basic comes with one channel-- you pay per channel, depending on how wild and complex the slopes on audiogram are. If you don’t want other features, like communication between HA’s, you don’t have to pay.

As requested, I shall restate the question. This is directed at both hearing care professionals and those of you who are hearing healthcare consumers. Our office has spent the last year navigating the maze (or should I say haunted house) of insurance reimbursement. In the state I practice in (New Hampshire), we have an insurance mandate that says each insurer must cover up to $1500 per hearing aid every 5 years. So, we are trying to make hearing aids accessible to our clients and also, be in compliance with the insurance contracts we are being forced (more or less) to sign.

In the industry, there is quite a lot of chatter about bundled vs unbundled hearing aid prices. What this means is that the unbundled price (which insurers require) separates the cost of the hardware from the cost of the services to fit the hardware, in this case hearing instruments and accessories. Historically, hearing professionals have wrapped their services in with the cost of the hearing aid in one, nice tidy package, however, this seems not to be the way the industry is moving, especially with internet channels opening up. With the single price model, people undervalue the service that goes with fitting a hearing aid properly, forgetting there are often years of training and expensive equipment and overhead to be able to provide a valuable service. There is a small group of people who may be fine with fitting their own hearing instruments, but in my 10 years or so of experience, this is not the majority of people. Most people need help once in a while and need professional services to get the best and highest use from their hearing aids.

What I would like to know is this: What do you think about bundled prices and unbundled prices. If you have purchased hearing aids in this newer price model, tell me about your experience. Did you feel nickle and dimed? Which model do you prefer? Why.

If you are a hearing professional, do you offer an unbundled plan and how does that work managing cashflow and keeping the lights on? Which model do you prefer? What are your thoughts.

Thanks for your insight.

@HearingAidGirl said:

Do you mind me asking what you mean when you say, “we bundle, sorta”. I’m just hesitant to make any grand sweeping changes because people are already confused enough regarding buying hearing aids.

Do you bill separately for the audio eval? Do you include one year of service, three years? Details please.

ENT office so we bill for hearing tests…all of them. Don’t bill for screenings though - but that doesn’t tell us anything other than if hearing is normal or not.

We submit a bill for the hearing aid eval but write it off if insurance doesn’t pay. All hearing aids come with 2-3 years of manufacturer warranty and loss/damage coverage. All in-house adjustments are included in the purchase of the hearing aid for the life of the instrument. When we submit to insurance, we bill separately for the hearing aid, fitting and dispensing fee. BUT, when I tell patients how much the hearing aids cost, I give them amount of all that added together. The only reason we do that is because some insurances will have greater reimbursement when it’s broken down like that…some don’t. So few have benefits, it probably averages out in the end with only a slight tilt in favor of unbundled reimbursement.

I can definitely see the benefit in unbundling…especially if you offer varying service packages and feature sets…but I think for my population it just becomes very confusing and when I have tried to explain the break down most cut me off and tell me they really don’t care about all that…just the overall cost.

I have some colleagues who have gone to unbundling with a great deal of success…but the ENT’s feel like at the moment it’s more trouble than it’s worth.

So are HA’s through Voc Rehab bundled vs unbundled? My resound zigas were a VR deal, and I got fitted once and it was done.

My VR counselor was passive-aggressive against me (see depression thread). VR counselor is gone now, and the new one really suits me, except I really don’t need VR any more (job interview on 26th):D. For a vocational choice she had discouraged.

For us, HA’s purchased through OVR are set at a different price and are unbundled so there’s the cost of the devices and then services. Not sure if it’s that way in every state or not.

She should have sent me to audi for followup. Instead, she sent me to the psychiatrist, who did nothing. Luckily, she farmed out my job-search assistance needs to someone who was understanding. I was free to complain. When I visited audi on self-pay, audi expressed irritation that I had not returned.