….today…. at drug stores, etc….


Hearing aids are now available over the counter at Walmart, Walgreens, CVS and Best Buy

.....Millions of Americans with hearing loss can now purchase hearing aids without a prescription or medical exam from Walgreens, CVS and Best Buy, according to the companies.

Walgreens on Monday started selling over-the-counter hearing aids online and at its stores nationwide for $799 a pair. By comparison, the average cost of prescription hearing aids can range between $2,000 and $8,000, according to the company.

CVS is selling over-the-counter devices on its website with prices ranging from $199 to $999. The drug store chain will also start offering them at select pharmacy locations beginning in November.

Walmart is also offering over-the-counter hearing aids online and in stores in Colorado, Michigan, Missouri, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee and Texas. The devices will be available at additional locations nationwide, according to the company. Prices range from $199 to $999 depending on the device.

Best Buy is selling 20 different over-the-counter hearing aids online with prices ranging from $200 to $3,000, according to the company. The electronics retailer will offer the devices in 300 stores across the country later this month.

And Hy-Vee, a supermarket chain, will offer four different hearing aids online and in 34 locations across Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska and Wisconsin this week. Prices range from $499 to $999. By the end of the year, the devices will be available in 100 stores.

The Food and Drug Administration issued a rule in August that allowed over-the-counter sales of hearing aids for adults ages 18 and older with mild to moderate hearing loss. People with severe hearing loss and children still need prescriptions for the devices.

President Joe Biden had issued an executive order in 2021 directing the Health and Human Services Department and the FDA to develop a rule allowing over-the-counter sales of hearing aids. The White House announced the availability of the hearing aids earlier Monday.

Some 30 million people in the U.S. have hearing loss but only about one-fifth of these individuals have hearing aids and use them, according to the FDA. Many people who could benefit from the devices either can't access them due to cost while other people don't use them due to perceived stigma, according the agency.

The FDA, in an analysis, estimated that over-the-counter hearing aids could save consumers about $1,438 each because they are not bundled with costly professional services.


…….can you hear me……now…….?!

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_____________________________________

I reject your reality and substitute my own!



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 10/17/2022 04:20PM by NewtonMP2100.

As a hearing aid wearer, I will emphasize the importance of proper programming and support to have a positive experience. If all you're looking for is louder, you may be okay with OTC aids.

It was not tough getting them before, but this should result in them being even cheaper at places like Costco. If Apple came out with a model with replaceable extended life batteries, Airpods could make outstanding hearing aids.

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In tha 360. MRF User Map

For people like me with Meniere's, hearing loss and extreme tinnitus I can't imagine not getting them without some programming.

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Grateful11

Filliam,

Airpods as hearing aids? Not a chance. I've had standard models and pro models. They fall out of ears _way_ too easily to be a viable alternative to hearing aids.

Using Airpod Pros right now and they keep falling out of my ears as I chew my lunch. Fricken' nuisance!

Would I want them as hearing aids (when the day comes that I need them)? Not a chance!

Robert

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Grateful11
For people like me with Meniere's, hearing loss and extreme tinnitus I can't imagine not getting them without some programming.

I agree.. but, I'm hoping competition (with OTC models) will start edging down some of the higher end models in price. Price competition is not a bad thing.

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Paul F.
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A sword never kills anybody; it is a tool in the killer's hand. - Lucius Annaeus Seneca c. 5 BC - 65 AD
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Good is the enemy of Excellent. Talent is not necessary for Excellence.
Persistence is necessary for Excellence. And Persistence is a Decision.
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Eureka, CA

My elderly dad lost his expensive hearing aids when he entered the hospital, somewhere during the work-up to admit him. The hospital just shrugged about this $xxxx loss. An inexpensive temporary replacement would have very helpful, even if not perfect.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/17/2022 01:39PM by Acer.

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NewtonMP2100
….today…. at drug stores, etc….



…….can you hear me……now…….?!

Huh, what did you say. Can’t hear you.

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Robert M
Filliam,

Airpods as hearing aids? Not a chance. I've had standard models and pro models. They fall out of ears _way_ too easily to be a viable alternative to hearing aids.

Using Airpod Pros right now and they keep falling out of my ears as I chew my lunch. Fricken' nuisance!

Would I want them as hearing aids (when the day comes that I need them)? Not a chance!

Robert

The new Pro's have an Extra Small ear plug thingie....
The Beats Fit have a silicone wing to hold them in.

I think you can get foam eartips to make them even tighter in the ear.


I remember Samsungs have a tuning app, test your hearing for a custom sound.

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San Antonio, TX (in the old city)


"All that is required for evil to prevail is for good men to do nothing." - Edmund Burke
“Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented." - Eli Weisel

"To announce that there must be no criticism of the President, or that we are to stand by the President, right or wrong, is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable to the American public." - Theodore Roosevelt (1918)

"I don’t want to see religious bigotry in any form. It would disturb me if there was a wedding between the religious fundamentalists and the political right. The hard right has no interest in religion except to manipulate it." - Billy Graham 1981

"Politics and governing demand compromise. But these Christians believe they are acting in the name of God, so they can't and won't compromise" - Barry Goldwater

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Robert M
Filliam,

Airpods as hearing aids? Not a chance. I've had standard models and pro models. They fall out of ears _way_ too easily to be a viable alternative to hearing aids.

Using Airpod Pros right now and they keep falling out of my ears as I chew my lunch. Fricken' nuisance!

Would I want them as hearing aids (when the day comes that I need them)? Not a chance!

Robert

I am more thinking of the features. They don't have to be the same form factor. Behind the ear would be fine, especially if it allowed a week per charge.

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In tha 360. MRF User Map

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Robert M
Filliam,

Airpods as hearing aids? Not a chance. I've had standard models and pro models. They fall out of ears _way_ too easily to be a viable alternative to hearing aids.

Using Airpod Pros right now and they keep falling out of my ears as I chew my lunch. Fricken' nuisance!

Would I want them as hearing aids (when the day comes that I need them)? Not a chance!

Robert

One size cannot fit all. It depends on the shape of an individual’s auris externa.

Mine stay in extremely well.

Give it a year, audiologists will be selling them programmed for simpler issues. It only makes sense.

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“No persons are more frequently wrong, than those who will not admit they are wrong.” -- François de La Rochefoucauld

"Those who cannot accept the past are condemned to revise it." -- Geo. Mathias

The German word for contraceptive is “Schwangerschaftsverhütungsmittel”. By the time you finished saying that, it’s too late

Deusx,

Never said one size would fit all. I know all too well that when it comes to hearing aids, ear buds and similar items, even multiple sizes aren't going to fit all. In the case of Airpod Pro ear buds, I tried every tip from Apple and several from 3rd parties. None fit well. Same thing happens with competitors.

The only reason I still use Airpod Pro ear buds is because I've yet to find a competitor that fits well _and_ offers a transparency system that works as well. Apple's system for allowing ambient sound into the airpod pro buds is the best I've tried so far. Factor in super compatibility with the iphone, ipad and Mac and it's a combination that's tough to beat even with the buds falling out now and again.

Would love to see what Apple could offer in the space of a hearing aid/headphone combination. Might not be as perfect as true dedicated hearing aids but it'd be very interesting.

Robert



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/19/2022 09:05AM by Robert M.

Quote
Acer
My elderly dad lost his expensive hearing aids when he entered the hospital, somewhere during the work-up to admit him. The hospital just shrugged about this $xxxx loss. An inexpensive temporary replacement would have very helpful, even if not perfect.

This happened to my dad, too. I’m curious to know if it would be possible to incorporate a location finder function in hearing aids that would help you find a lost hearing aid.