• Skip to main content
  • Skip to secondary menu
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
California Health Advocates

California Health Advocates

  • Contact
  • Home
  • About Us
    • Contact
    • Our Team
    • Mission
    • Education Services
    • About HICAP
    • Press
    • Testimonials
  • MEDICARE COUNSELING
  • Fact Sheets
  • Topics
    • The Basics
    • Prescription Drugs
    • Low-Income Help
    • Medigap
    • Medicare Advantage
    • Other Health Insurance
    • Appeals
    • Billing & Claims
    • Disabilities
    • Long-Term Care
    • Tribal Nations & Medicare
    • Health Care Reform
    • Advocacy & Policy
    • Glossary
  • Fraud & Abuse
  • Medicare Complaints
  • Blog
  • Donate

Cheaper Hearing Aids Now Available OTC Without a Prescription

California Health Advocates > News > Cheaper Hearing Aids Now Available OTC Without a Prescription

Posted by Karen Joy Fletcher on November 2, 2022

hearing aids, couple giving thumbs up

Did you hear the good news? Under the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) final rule announced last month, adults with mild-to-moderate hearing loss can now buy hearing aids at a store or online without a prescription, exam, or audiologist fitting. This change is thanks to President Biden’s push to lower the cost of hearing aids and expand access via his Executive Order on Promoting Competition in the American Economy. The Executive Order called on the FDA to make hearing aids available over the counter, without a prescription.

The FDA estimates this could lower average costs by as much as $3,000 per pair—providing significant breathing room for the nearly 30 million Americans with hearing loss, including nearly 10 million adults under age 60.

Below are some examples of retailers now selling over the counter hearing aids, as detailed in a recent White House fact sheet.

  • Walgreens is selling hearings aids at stores nationwide and online for $799 per pair. According to Walgreens, comparable models sold by specialists range from $2,000 to $8,000 a pair.
  • CVS is selling over-the-counter hearing aids on CVS.com, with varying options on model and price point. CVS will also offer hearing aids in select CVS Pharmacy locations beginning in November.
  • Walmart will offer an assortment of over-the-counter hearing aids on Walmart.com, SamsClub.com, and in over 1,000 Vision Centers in Walmart stores across Colorado, Michigan, Missouri, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, and Texas, as well as 474 Sam’s Club Hearing Aid Center locations. Available products will range in price from $199 to $999 per pair, while according to Walmart, comparable prescription hearing aids are priced at $4,400 to $5,500 per pair.
  • Best Buy is offering nearly 20 different hearing devices online, and is offering hearing aids in nearly 300 stores across the country. Devices range in price between $200 and $3,000.
  • Hy-Vee is selling over-the-counter hearing aids online and in 34 locations across Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, and Wisconsin. Hy-Vee plans to offer hearing aids in 100 locations by the end of the year. Hy-Vee offers four models ranging in price from $499.99 to $999.99.

For more information, see the White House fact sheet: Cheaper Hearing Aids Now in Stores Thanks to Biden Administration Competition Agenda.

Filed Under: News, Professionals, Resources

Previous Post: « CHA Supports Rescinding Rule that Undermines Medicaid Continuous Coverage Protections During the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency
Next Post: Need a Ride to Vote? NCOA & Lyft Provide Rides for Older Adults »

About Karen Joy Fletcher

Our blogger Karen Joy Fletcher is CHA's Communications Director. With a Masters in Public Health from UC Berkeley, she is the online "public face" of the organization, provides technical expertise, writing and research on Medicare and other health care issues. She is responsible for digital content creation, management of CHA’s editorial calendar, and managing all aspects of CHA’s social media presence. She loves being a "communicator" and enjoys networking and collaborating with the passionate people and agencies in the health advocacy field. See her current articles.

Related Posts

  • Hospice Fraud Highlighted in New Yorker Magazine
  • Parent Healthcare Act (AB 570) Allows Californians to Add Parents to Their Healthcare
  • Golden State Grant Provides Relief for Seniors & People with Disabilities on SSI
  • American Rescue Plan Gives Big to Native Communities

Primary Sidebar

Change Text Size

  • 100%  110%  120%  130%  

News & Blog Categories

  • Medicare Advantage
  • Low-Income help
  • Medicare & Disabilities
  • Medicare Basics
  • Prescription Drugs
  • Medicare & Other Health Insurance
  • Medicare Billings, Claims & Appeals
  • Health Care Disparities
  • Fraud & Abuse

—

  • COVID-19
  • Resources
  • Health Care Reform
  • Long-Term Care
  • CHA News

—

  • Advocacy & Policy
  • Letters and Comments to Policymakers
  • Legislative and Congressional Testimony
  • Policy Briefs

Send Us Comment

Do you have comments or concerns about your Medicare coverage? Issues regarding getting your needed prescriptions from your Part D plan, or a Medicare Advantage plan representative's marketing practices? Let us know at comments@cahealthadvocates.org.

We are dedicated to making Medicare's program work well for all beneficiaries. Your feedback from your own or your client's concerns and experiences with Medicare, will guide our Medicare advocacy efforts with key policy and decision-makers in both California and nationally with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and Congress.

Archives

Donate Today

Footer

Sign up for our newsletter

Choose the news you'd like to receive

Important Links

  • About Us
  • Fact Sheets
  • Blog
  • Donate
  • Contact
  • Privacy Notice
  • Cookie Policy
  • Accessibility Statement

Follow Us

Copyright © 2023 · California Health Advocates · Web Design by TWK Web and Print Design · Log in