High Cost of Hearing Aids? Higher Cost of No Hearing Aids

One of the greatest barriers to hearing aids has always been cost.  “why do hearing aids have to be so expensive?” people always ask.  While that question will be addressed in a separate blog, the other question thats often overlooked is “what is the cost if my hearing loss is untreated?“

Did you know:  Hearing loss has well established relationships to other health issues such as: Heart disease, Dementia, Diabetes, Strokes, Falling, to name a few.

According to Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, “older adults with untreated hearing loss have substantially higher total health care costs compared to those who don’t have hearing loss — an average of 46 percent, totalling $22,434 per person over a decade.” (USD). However, in a another study done by University of South Carolina, researchers found that health care costs of those who have diagnosed hearing loss are only 33 percent higher.

Some of the reasons for the higher healthcare costs could be that those with hearing loss are more likely to wait to seek assistance because of difficulty communicating.  Because of this difficulty they could misinterpreting treatment instructions thus prolonging the treatment and leading to higher costs.

Another cost beyond healthcare is lost income.  The Better Hearing Institute reported that on average a person with untreated hearing loss can lose up to $30,000 in annual income based on the degree of loss.  The good news however is that the lost income is recovered with the use of hearing aids.

If you suspect yourself or a loved one has a hearing loss and would like to talk to an Ears Canada professional about solutions click here or call 647 446 1774.  It would be our pleasure to help you