Unless you are getting your hearing aids from the VA I guarantee you that shopping around for a good price is well worth it. The price difference in town here for the identical Phonaks I have was $1,600 bucks!!! And watch out for their so called "fitting fee".....I've seen it range from $300 down to $100. Audiologists will make money off of you unless you question every charge and what you are getting for it. The BS of you are paying for my "expertise" only carry's so much weight.
And not one of a half dozen audiologists around here would program a set of hearing aids bought online.....and there are some good deals on the same units you might be looking at believe me. I threw 100 dollar bills down on the counter and they wouldn't balk.....that tells me they know they have a captive audience and turning down one person on occasion won't hurt their bottom line.

My prediction is that within 5 years there will gene therapy based medications that will fix the damage that causes hearing loss. There are a couple of trials going on now that show good promise. I tried to sign up for one of the clinical trials but missed the age cutoff...:) The company doing it is Frequency Therapeutics and I know they are recruiting for volunteers and have a location in San Antonio that is participating in the trials. If you want to see what clinical trials are happening in the US there is a web site that will list them. I can't remember the site off the top of my head but a google search will turn it up.

thank you

I had an ear infection on an elk hunt that damaged my hearing in my right ear. I finally decided to try hearing aids. Bought a new set of Nano aids for right and left ear for $150 on ebay. They work great.

Costco is the place. $1500 out of pocket and great warranties.

Here is the a good review on them.

I don't want to hear my wife !

I believe that the Costco aids are rebranded Phonaks. Not sure exactly sure which model. The Phonak Marvel is their newest model. I have been told that some, I don't know which, features are "crippled" on the costco aids. A google search about them will give you some good info.

I learned everything I know about hearings aids the hard way. Wasn't mentally prepared to deal with the hearing loss and made rash, quick decisions about what to do and how to pick an audiologist. Didn't have anybody to tell me the things I'm posting here. Now that I know these things I'm a first class pain in the a** when it comes to dealing with audiologists. I ask for price, make'em break it down (which many of them will NOT do), and shop around. If I don't like what I hear I walk away.

You can get an audiogram done, get a copy of it(which you are entitled to via the HIPPA medical act), so don't let them tell you otherwise. Take that and shop the local dealers. Phonak, Resound, Oticon are some of the top brands. And if you are adventurous you can learn to program your aids yourself. The hardware and software is out there on the 'Net. Get them setup initially and learn to tweak the settings so they sound right to you. Remember the audiologist can't hear what you do so they can only get you just so close. Taking control of your aids yourself allows you to fine tune the settings. It would take a year going to the audiologists office to do all tweaks you might want. I can spend all weekend if I want trying stuff to improve what I hear....just don't tell them what you're doing...:)

^^^^^^^^

I just got my hearing aids at Costco after being courted by an independent outfit in Paris. The audiologist did a much better job and the exam was identical to the one at the independent outfit. Mine cost $1499 out the door, bluetooth and use batteries. Costco also has the best prices on batteries. Have been back for routine maintenance at no charge and all is well. The coolest part to me was when they used the small camera and showed you the inner ear canal, poof, not much in there. I have finally gotten used to them and they work well for me. I work in a public school setting so the noise levels vary and it's cool to be able to raise or lower the sensitivity of the individual side of the aids. Good luck, I recommend Costco in Rockwall.

I've had my hearing aids from Costco about 8 months and been real happy with them....I think I paid about $1,650.00..I was quoted $4,500. by an audiologist at a hearing aid store.......incidently the hearing aid specialist at Costco told me she was paid the same whether I bought the hearing aids or not and she received no financial incentive if I bought the hearing aids...

I also got mine at Costco and have had them for about 5 years. I have been retested probably 4 times at no charge. All of the external parts are free if needed. I do pay for batteries. I would suggest to get the ear wax removed before being tested. I was not charged for the frist test and got the Phonaks.

Called VA to check on hearing aids for dad (90 years old), doesn't qualify due to his pension and social security. BS