Costco Hearing Aids?

[sksjasams]

DH had a hearing test yesterday at a local clinic with an audiologist (covered by insurance). His low tones are a little below normal but his high tones drop all way down. She recommended 2 open fit behind the ear hearing aids. The hearing aids they carry are Widex. They have 3 levels. One with 5 channels, one with 10 channels and one with 15 channels.

Of course with his type of hearing loss, she recommends the most expensive ones - $6600 for the pair. we had absolutely no idea how expensive they are! Our insurance will pay $400 toward each ear.

I asked her about Costco or other places, but she said the quality, technology and service would not be comparable.

Does anyone have any experience with Costco hearing aids, or any other options? Costco has a pair for $1999 or even the most expensive ones are $2800. Huge price difference, but is it worth it? Insurance will not pay anything toward a non-covered provider.

Thank you for your help!!

 

[jiminyjen]

My son has worn BTE hearing aids since he was two. He is now 19, so we have invested quite a bit over the years into hearing aids. The big issue is servicing the aids. The audiologist may only service devices he or she sells. Parts such as the tubing, microphone covers , etc. have to be changed periodically. As far as the three levels, we have found it is not worth the extra money for the top level. My son only likes using one setting, so having 15 is a waste of money. We have learned this the hard way! It may be better going in the middle for his first pair. We have had the best luck with Phonak aids. Good luck with your decision!

 

[jiminyjen]

One more consideration- several brands now have water and dust resistant models. Sweat and moisture are a huge problem for hearing aid wearers. We are looking into this now. Prices are comparable to other aids. We have always had to pay out of pocket. Our insurance will pay nothing, so you are fortunate. These devices are so expensive, but consider it an investment. If you buy the cheaper aids now, you will just be replacing them sooner.

 

[pooh17]

I just bought a new BTE yesterday from my audiologist and it was $1900. My insurance will pay $400. I consider this a bargain. He had a sample that he was able to program to my hearing. The new technology was amazing - crystal clear.

I wouldn't go to a clinic or costco for something like this. Find a good audiologist who can provide service. My last in the ear aid needed service multiple times.

 

[mrsabbott]

My 7 year old daughter has hearing aids. We were fortunate enough to get them while DH was active duty and tricare covered the entire cost. With the tricare retirement, they cover nothing so from here on out it all comes out of pocket for us! Very expensive! I understand why you would consider a cheaper option, but I would be wary of not getting something that will FOR SURE help his hearing.. Ones from Costco seems like a gamble to me.

 

[crashbb]

My son has worn BTE hearing aids since he was two. He is now 19, so we have invested quite a bit over the years into hearing aids. The big issue is servicing the aids. The audiologist may only service devices he or she sells. Parts such as the tubing, microphone covers , etc. have to be changed periodically. As far as the three levels, we have found it is not worth the extra money for the top level. My son only likes using one setting, so having 15 is a waste of money. We have learned this the hard way! It may be better going in the middle for his first pair. We have had the best luck with Phonak aids. Good luck with your decision!

It sounds like you're confusing CHANNELS and PROGRAMS.

CHANNELS allow for fine-tuning (different frequencies can be set to different amounts of amplication). As a user, this is invisible.

PROGRAMS are specific settings of the channels for different situations (for example, a concert versus a conversation). The user switches between the programs.

My current set of hearing aids have 10 channels and 3 programs. I switch between two of the programs ("master" which is the default setting and "comfort" which tends to reduce the background noise). I also have a program for "music", but I almost never use it. I agree with your son that more than two programs is not important (to me).

Channels are helpful for people with varied hearing (e.g. ski slope or cookie bite). I have a cookie bite hearing loss, so the 10 channels means the audiologist could amplify the middle frequencies (where I don't hear well) without having to boost up the low/high frequencies (where my hearing is much better).

OP - I have Widex as well (the Dream). I went with the 200 series (the dreams are 100s, 200s, 300s, or 400s, with 100s being the lowest). It had enough channels to tune my hearing aids well for me and the extra bit of fine tuning I would get by going up to the 300s (an extra five channels) wasn't worth the price difference (to me). I know that people have had success getting their hearing aids from Costco, but I was more comfortable going through my audiologist - who is there to perform corrections etc. whenever I need.

 

[sksjasams]

Thank you for your replies! We definitely have a lot to learn.

Just to clarify, we did go to real audiologist at an ENT dept in a good medical facility - we just call them 'clinics' around here.

I also decided to give a call today to the audiology dept at UW Madison. She said they offer lower prices, but good service with experienced audiologists working with grad students. She said they would work to find a technology that would work within our budget. Not sure how to take that...if they actually have lower prices or will help you find a lower cost model that will work for you. She said they have lower prices, but not rock bottom...

Which led me to ask her about Costco. She basically said the same thing as the other audiologist, that quality, techniology and service would not be as good. I did find some good reviews online about Costco hearing aids.

I do understand about not skimping on quality, but at this point DH is saying forget it. He says its not worth it and if we had $6600 to spend, which we don't, he would rather get a nicer car or a boat!

Anyone have any experience with Costco, or other less expensive options?

Thanks again!

 

[Legendteri]

My husband works at a Costco that does offer the hearing aid services. I do know that they are extremely popular and a very good quality hearing aid and I think the same that you would find at a Dr's office except Costco's margin is lower. In fact, their hearing aid office was so busy and the audiologist was booked up so far in advance that they had to hire another one.

 

[taitai]

Hearing Aids are the fastest growing product sold at Costco and they have become the world's leading suppliers of hearing aids. They have hired audiologists to work in the store and are training hundreds of employees to be licensed distributors (a 2 year process). I would not for a second hesitate to go to Costco and buy a hearing aid. Their house brand hearing aids are manufactured by some of the leading name branded manufacturers. Basically, the exact same thing.

 

[ShelsGoingToDisney]

I am hearing impaired and wear hearing aids. They don't help me very much because I have a very rare severe loss in the mid range and better than normal hearing in the upper range! Hearing aids are actually designed to do the opposite of what I need them to do! They do help me more than nothing though! I rely on lip reading and body language for 80% of my language understanding.

Needless to say since I have a hard to fit loss I opted for the aid with the greatest number of channels to work with. Even then my current pair purchased last fall were only $4400 (Starky brand). No insurance coverage. Mine are in the canal version, not behind the ear. I cannot tolerate the behind the ear version with my hair rustling against them.

Since I am so hard to fit Costco is not an option for me so I haven't tried them. My advice to you is to look around and find an audiologist, or even Costco, that you feel comfortable with and is willing to let you try out different models and brands. Give you a 30 or 45 day trial with the aids to see how you like them, etc. If they aren't willing to work with you at all and give you trials then walk away and find someone who will.

Honestly it sounds to me like you have a fairly common type of loss and it shouldn't be too terribly difficult to fit. You shouldn't need the top of the line model. Sadly there are a lot of audiologists and hearing aid places that are out to make a quick buck more than they are out to help and it sounds like you have visited one! I would look around for an audiologist that works with more than one hearing aid company (Usually it is kind of a red flag when they only work with one company), that is willing to fit you and trial you in a brand and model that is right for you on a budget that works for you. They are out there. You don't have to go to Costco to get that. Good luck!

 

[bumbershoot]

I have heard nothing but good about Costco for hearing aids.

 

[windycitymom]

Did you know that most audiologist offices mark up their hearing aids 30-40%? My husband got his hearing aids from Sams Club, but we will go to Costco next time (closer to our home). They fit you and service the aids as well.

 

[seven dwarfs]

I have a friend who has worn hearing aides since she was a child. She is now in her 60's. She has severe hearing loss to date and she gets her hearing aides from costco. She said they have saved her a small fortune and the service has been great.

 

[saucymb]

Please go to an audiologist for the hearing aids. My husband and my sons are both hearing impaired; when we purchased hearing aids in 2008, they were around $7,000 for each pair (our insurance covered most of it). We bought new ones this year, and the technology had improved so much it was incredible, and what we got for $1500 per set this year was way better than what we paid $7k per set 4 years earlier.

Both of them got the new Phonak Bolero Q50; this includes a great warranty. Hearing Aids typically do not do well with moisture/sweat. These new ones are great.

Many audiology "offices" do have mark-up's of up to 50% on their hearing aids. Our audiology department affiliated with the local hospital system here in Charlotte has zero mark-up. They are provided at-cost.

She is right about the quality, service, and technology at Costco not being on par with what you will find with an audiologist office.

Also, the "old-school" FM system is very expensive. There is new technology that uses Blue-Tooth and it is significantly cheaper. I'm not sure if that is of interest to you; my husband has it but rarely uses it (his job doesn't require much communication beyond a computer!), but my son, who is a rising 2nd grader, uses it daily and the difference it makes is unmistakable.

Good luck!

 

[momw/2princesses]

Please go to an audiologist for the hearing aids. My husband and my sons are both hearing impaired; when we purchased hearing aids in 2008, they were around $7,000 for each pair (our insurance covered most of it). We bought new ones this year, and the technology had improved so much it was incredible, and what we got for $1500 per set this year was way better than what we paid $7k per set 4 years earlier.

Both of them got the new Phonak Bolero Q50; this includes a great warranty. Hearing Aids typically do not do well with moisture/sweat. These new ones are great.

Many audiology "offices" do have mark-up's of up to 50% on their hearing aids. Our audiology department affiliated with the local hospital system here in Charlotte has zero mark-up. They are provided at-cost.

She is right about the quality, service, and technology at Costco not being on par with what you will find with an audiologist office.

Also, the "old-school" FM system is very expensive. There is new technology that uses Blue-Tooth and it is significantly cheaper. I'm not sure if that is of interest to you; my husband has it but rarely uses it (his job doesn't require much communication beyond a computer!), but my son, who is a rising 2nd grader, uses it daily and the difference it makes is unmistakable.

Good luck!

Would you mind telling me which audiologist you use? My DD goes to CEENTA. I don't have any real issues with the office, but the cost of the hearing aids is steep!! I'm open to going somewhere else if I can save on the hearing aids.

Thanks so much!

 

[1GR8DISNEYFAN]

My brother-in-law got his hearing aids at Costco and is very pleased with them. He has mentioned that buying them at Costco saved him a lot of money. He and my sister also have their eyes examined at Costco and buy their glasses there. While they do have insurance, they said it is less expensive to buy them at Costco without ins. I don't know anything about hearing aids, so I don't know what kind they are, he said they are one of the most expensive though. They are so small that you don't even notice them.

 

[saucymb]

Would you mind telling me which audiologist you use? My DD goes to CEENTA. I don't have any real issues with the office, but the cost of the hearing aids is steep!! I'm open to going somewhere else if I can save on the hearing aids.

Thanks so much!

We go to Presbyterian Audiology on Baldwin/3rd. They are great!

 

[Mickey1Fan]

I don't know what model my Mom has but she bought her hearing aids at Costco and save close to $2,000 on the exact same model as the audiologist office. She said the woman who fitted her and adjusted them was excellent. She has had a couple of adjustments getting used to the sound she likes but overall recommends Costco highly. She has a remote control if that helps. She likes the remote, it is easy to change the volume in some situations. Rides at WDW for one!

 

[drp4video]

I got my first pair of hearing aids in October 2009 from Costco. Rexton Cobalt 16. I still have them. They are made by Siemans and are one of the same hearing aids that Siemans sells but have the Rexton name for Costco. I have been very happy with them. I first went to an audiologist who did my testing and the hearing aids she wanted to sell me were about $7500.00. I paid $3000.00 for the pair at Costco which included a Tek and transmitter for blue tooth and my tv, as well as other things. No charge for as many adjustments as you need and The warranty at costco was 3 years, longer than the other, and even today if I break the box that holds the battery or need anything, domes, etc..they never charge me.

 

[wendow]

My dh has hearing loss and tinnitus. He needs hearing aids. I was shocked at the cost and even more shocked to learn our insurance covers 0% of the cost. Kind of unbelievable. Anyway, my research into this has led me to all kinds of glowing reviews about Costco. We'll be looking there for my dh. I also just found out yesterday that my dh's uncle gets his hearing aids from Costco and couldn't be more pleased with his hearing aids and the service.