I just ordered a new hearing aid to replace the one that died last week. The old one was a state-of-the art GN ReSound digital aid when it came out 6. years ago. The new one is a Unitron Unison. It’s considered an entry-level 2-channel digital aid, but it offers more features than the old one. It’s a power aid (the old one wasn’t) and has a manual volume control (the old one didn’t). Like the old one, it offers directional microphones, multiple listening programs and a telecoil. I was given a loaner aid similar to the new one while it is on order, and I immediately noticed the extra power. In addition, I was told that Unitron aids are generally more reliable than ReSounds.
I said that I wanted to spend as close to $1,000 as possible because that’s how much my insurance covers per ear. I didn’t quite make it under $1,000, but I came close enough. This one cost $1,345, including a new earmold and 2-year supply of batteries. That means it’s just costing $345 out of pocket, or less than the $450 I would have had to pay to get my old aid repaired. We actually had an interesting discussion about prices. I had suggested I try an analog aid if it were cheaper, but I was told analogs are now more expensive, around $2,000, because they’re no longer sold in volume. The other interesting thing I was told is that entry-level digital aids these days have every available feature because they’re the ones that are heavily marketed to new consumers.
My audiologist’s office is affiliated with an international chain, so I assume the price list is fairly standard. He was working from a Canadian price list, but Canadian and American dollars are worth about the same these days. The new aid will arrive in about a week and will come with a 60-day trial.
In the meantime, I’m happy to have the loaner. I just heard lots of birds chirping, which I haven’t heard for a long time. I’m quite happy .
Wordsmith
