We finally got one two hours away. I hear Costco is a good place to get them. My mom really needs some bad. Do you know the approximate cost? Can you get by with just one? Do you have to make many trips back to the store?

Edit: I also would like information on batteries, fit, and anything else applicable. She doesn’t need Bluetooth or connection to TV, and appearance doesn’t matter much. And she will want something that fits well and is not always on the verge of falling out.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/04/2022 12:30AM by Dennis S.

Consider getting induction charging instead of batteries. Much easier than constantly trying to get small batteries changed, especially for those with weaker eyesight or arthritic hands.

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I haven't bought hearing aids at Costco but I will if/when I need them. I've had my hearing checked there (free) every couple of years for the last 7 years. I've lost some high frequency abilities and they tell me I could use them but when we talk it's clear that I'm ambivalent so they don't push me at all. I only go get checked when my wife complains enough. Going stops the complaining for a year and then it starts again!

The Kirkland hearing aids are $1400 and include all the various checkups and adjustments that might be needed. There's no cost for a hearing test. My reading suggests that the Kirkland hearing aids are very good but a step behind the very newest brand names. They're made by Sonova (who also makes Phonac hearing aids). The current ones are rechargeable, they have bluetooth and can stream audio from a tv or cell phone. They'll refund them for 180 days. I know a couple of people who have Kirkland hearing aids and they're happy with them. Costco also sells several other brands of hearing aids that are more expensive.

[www.costco.com]

.....no but relative got it for their aunt [ good price ].....so I.....hear.....it's ok....

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Dennis S
We finally got one two hours away. I hear Costco is a good place to get them. My mom really needs some bad. Do you know the approximate cost? Can you get by with just one? Do you have to make many trips back to the store?

Edit: I also would like information on batteries, fit, and anything else applicable. She doesn’t need Bluetooth or connection to TV, and appearance doesn’t matter much. And she will want something that fits well and is not always on the verge of falling out.

For the current price in your area, just go online.

My younger brother got his at Costco a number of years ago and he is satisfied. I got mine there, but am not YET satisfied after a year. HA for my right ear (most loss) works fine. Still have not gotten the one for the left ear to work after 2 return trips to the Costco center. The phone app works as it should but until both hearing aids are working, it is useless for me. The sad thing is that because of high demand, appointments are a 2 month wait between tests. I honestly think my problem is the talent of the hearing specialists (3) that I have encountered, and I may also be contributing with poor communication. I think a left side aid will work as well as the right side unit, but making that happen is not proving easy.

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modelamac
I honestly think my problem is the talent of the hearing specialists (3) that I have encountered,

This is going to be the case no matter what provider you choose; it comes down to the expertise of the practitioner. Costco has a good rep in general for their hearing aid services.

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My mom had them, but they ate batteries. I hope rechargeable are much better now.

Having a Lost-dough nearby was very handy because my family seems to make a lot of earwax. Her hearing aids needed cleaning on a monthly basis. She would have done some of it herself but for arthritis and macular degeneration pretty much killed her fine hand work.


I keep hoping Apple will eventually prioritize a hearing product for older users, like they did with the watch. Having earbuds that work as hearing aids with user configurable frequency response would be a huge boon.

... just make them repairable, like have easy 3rd party/user battery replacement without the DRM in the phones.

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My sister is a doctor of audiology and both my parents have hearing aids. My mom has severe hearing loss and has a cochlear implant plus hearing aids. My dad just has hearing aids and has moderate loss.

There are two things to consider when choosing Costco. (1)The quality of the hearing test and fitting and (2) the actual hearing aid. For many people, Costco's level of quality will meet their needs and be "good enough," but if you've never had hearing aids or had hearing loss evaluated before, that can be difficult to assess.

Costco has hearing aid fitters that lack the same level of training as a PhD audiologist. That said, some hearing aid fitters have been in the field longer than there has been an audiology doctorate and they do fantastic work. Basically, the level of training is so brief that it's very hit-or-miss. With Costco's great benefits and how well they treat their employees, I'd expect that they have some the better fitters out there.

I'm not 100% positive but I can't see how Costco's testing could be as extensive as an audiologist's. There's no way they could give away a 30-60 min long evaluation involving the expensive equipment, such as a soundproof booth, that my sister has access to. With more limited equipment and a more limited test, they'll be able to identify most mainstream hearing loss but you're not going to get the same level of detailed hearing evaluation.

The last piece of the puzzle is the fit, which can make or break the hearing aid. If the hearing aid doesn't fit well, irritates the ear, or falls out frequently, it won't be worn. If it doesn't fit well initially, you have to return (possibly repeatedly) for additional ear moldings and fittings. My mom has been through several audiologists and this part has been highly dependent on the person making the mold and fitting it. Some seemed to never get it right while others have been able to make it work well.

My sister says that Costco has some good hearing aids and some that are so-so. The good ones are more expensive and are basically older models of what she fits and sells. The so-so ones are better than nothing, for sure, but there is always the issue of actually getting someone to wear them. Hearing aids are annoying to have in your ears and if they don't work well, many times the person with hearing loss will just skip wearing them,

I know you said that she doesn't need bluetooth or anything fancy, but most of the higher quality hearing aids will have those features. It's pretty amazing to see my mom pull out her phone and adjust her hearing aid on-the-fly to correct for background noise or to compensate for a voice she has trouble understanding. She can also receive phone calls directly in her hearing aids which has been huge as she had to put everyone on speaker before (and hold it up to her ear).

I'd look for an audiologist in your immediate area for a hearing evaluation and discuss hearing aid options. (Good audiologists just want their patients to be able to hear and I know my sister has sent patients to Costco when the aids she offered were out of their price range.) Once that's done, you can determine if Costco is a good fit for your mom. You'll save some money with them, for sure, but if it's a 2 hour trek, I don't know that it'd be worth it.

Hope this helps!
Sarah

Can you get by with just one?

I had to get a letter from my audiologist certifying I am completely deaf in my right ear before Costco would agree to sell me just one aid. I have nerve damage on that side, so there is no chance an aid could benefit me in any way. YMMV.

Otherwise, I’ve been very happy with the aid AND Costco’s customer service. They’ve replaced parts and are always helpful about any questions or making adjustments with no appointment. Once they had to send it to the factory to fix a persistent static but the repair was free.

One caveat: if you don’t like the technician who does your initial setup, find a different one. I did and it made a big difference. I also recommended getting your hearing test by an audiologist if you can. They’ll want to sell you one of their more expensive hearing aids, but “just say no” until you price out at Costco.

I have many friends and clients that use Costco and are very happy. I work with hearing and sight impaired groups often.
The cost of the Kirkland Signature at $1400 is a significant difference from the $3,000-$8,000 that the equivalent device costs from an independent audiologist. If a person, has a unique hearing complication, always use an audiologist.
One thing to make sure the hearing devices have is MFI-Made For iPhone.
MFI, offers easy access to many controls, and work seamlessly for phone calls. alerts and music.

[support.apple.com]

MFI Hearing devices have the option to do Live Listen. This allows the wearer to leverage the iPhone microphone, by placing the phone near the person speaking, to enhance hearing the conversation.

[support.apple.com]

There are a surprising number of audiologists do not know, or promote MFI.

PSA-Note. Everyone should go get a free hearing test from Costco, at least as a baseline, and retest every 1-2 years. If you have significant hearing loss, and you do not get hearing aids, your brain starts to shut down your sense of hearing, since it is not being used. Hearing loss is cumlative over a lifetime.

I have used Costco for a few years. I have dealt with audiologists for parents and senior friends.

Use Costco. While I agree that the 'fitter' capability is key, I can point to clueless audiologists with advanced degrees. And some ENT docs are clueless as well. By comparison, most of us seek an ophthalmologist for disease, but prefer an optician for a refraction.

With all respect to Sarah, Costco will not sell aids until you do the 45 minute exam in the soundproof booth with all the software from the manufacturers. They can show you all the profiles, and they can show you changes over years.

A purchase usually requires 3 visits. They do a test. They do the fitting. And they kind of insist on a follow up. All is included. If you need more follow up, it is also included.

This service has driven the HA industry crazy. They desperately to charge thousands and to charge for visits. See also, dealing with my M-I-L's dispenser. Only when I threatened them with Costco did they relent.

Costco sells the top brands in the various applications (in canal, etc.) The Kirkland over the ear product is specified by them as private label and they get bids. They have changed manufacturing partners a few times. My first pair were Resound. My current pair are Phonak. Costco is intent on driving down the price. They started at $1999. As Michael said above, they are now at $1399. You can dive into the interwebs where the HA hobbyists compare the Phonak models to Costco to try to divine the differences.

The HA future is going to be cheap, almost disposable. There is going to be computer testing with no fitters. They are going to cost $200 or less. The Costco fitter was telling me last fall that they see this coming. Kinda like $40 glasses shook Optometry. He said that the $6000 guys have a problem.

Finally, the industry is moving hard toward recharge in the aid. Older people of huge issues with batteries as the OP said. The current Costco version snaps the aids into a USB powered case every night.

With all respect to Sarah, Costco will not sell aids until you do the 45 minute exam in the soundproof booth with all the software from the manufacturers. They can show you all the profiles, and they can show you changes over years.

This is good to know, but I thought having an audiologist’s results in hand at the time of my Costco exam was kind of reassuring. My Costco examiner took pains to show me how similar his test was to my audiologist report.

I’ve been buying them at Costco for almost ten years and each new model I buy gets better and better. My current pair battery life is about one week. My first pair was rechargeable but subsequent aids have been battery. It’s easier to carry a spare set of batteries than the charger. Costco service and support is superb. Three year warranty and one replacement for loss.
My Blue Cross/BlueShield plan covers one pair every five years up to $2600. They used to cover one new pair every three years, but I guess it was costing them too much. If your plan covers hearing aids, then Costco is the best choice for provider.
The only downside is Costco doesn’t accept insurance. You have to pay and submit a claim to your insurance. I’ve been lucky and get a reimbursement check before the credit card bill is due.

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richorlin



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/05/2022 10:03AM by richorlin.