Expand access to hearing aids for all New Yorkers

Imagine you’re a senior citizen living on a fixed income in a neighborhood like Hunts Point in the Bronx. Let’s say you were having blurry vision. You’d go to your eye doctor, get your vision checked, receive a prescription, and leave with a new pair of specs. All in one place, all in one stop.

For those with moderate to severe hearing loss the story is much different. That same senior citizen living in Hunts Point would go to her ear, nose and throat (ENT) doctor who can offer a battery of tests to determine whether she is indeed suffering from hearing loss, and if so, why? If inner ear problems were causing the hearing loss, most of the time her doctor would recommend getting hearing aids as the best treatment option and write a prescription.

But here’s where things differ dramatically from the eye doctor: Instead of getting a hearing aid on the spot, that same patient would have to go somewhere else – like Walmart – because under state law New York is one of only two states that prohibits ENT offices from selling hearing aids to patients.

From Hunts Point, a senior citizen who depends on mass transit could be facing a one-hour trip each way by bus and subway to the nearest Costco. That’s a major inconvenience for many patients, who would much rather stay with the medical professional they trust to fit them for their hearing aid.

Lawmakers must not leave town this year without passing common sense legislation in the Senate and the Assembly (A127-A/S4080-A) that would fix these problems by allowing patients to purchase a hearing aid from their audiologist working with an ENT. The bill has broad support among progressive activists, business groups and leading voices in the medical community.

The bill would make hearing aids more accessible and more affordable for people who desperately need them. When New Jersey passed a similar law, the price of hearing aids dropped by 22 percent. The retail giants of Jersey had to then compete with physicians.

Since most health insurance plans don’t cover hearing aids – which typically cost thousands of dollars – this could mean hundreds of dollars in savings for patients.

Forcing a patient to take additional trips may mean a longer time between getting a diagnosis and actually buying the hearing aid. It may mean the senior doesn’t get the hearing aid at all. Seniors with hearing loss who don’t wear hearing aids often suffer from a greater degree of social isolation.

There’s ample proof that hearing aids help. Hearing aids benefit 95 percent of people whose hearing loss is caused by inner ear problems. A recent study showed that hearing aids improve cognitive function in the elderly, and may even help prevent or delay the onset of dementia. In short, these little devices can make a huge impact. Simply put, hearing aids can help re-engage people in society again, helping them to be vital and productive.

This bill would not only benefit seniors. In fact, 65 percent of people with hearing loss are younger than 65 and 60 percent are either in school or part of the workforce. About one in 10 New Yorkers suffers from hearing loss, and for about 600,000 of them, it’s moderate to severe.

The bill will also expand patient access (especially important for low income people and seniors) and lower costs at the same time. Music to our ears.

Gavin Setzen MD FACS FAAOA, practices in Albany, and is president of the New York State Society of Otolaryngology – Head & Neck Surgery (NYSSO-HNS). Robert Green MD FACS is the president of ENT and Allergy Associates, LLP, the largest ENT practice in the state, and foremost leader in otolaryngology practices in the country.