Both hard of hearing patients and audiologists have been challenged to avoid COVID-19 these days. Fortunately, technology has met the challenge by enabling audiologists to communicate with their patients via telehealth.
Hearing aid pricing seems like a bunch of random numbers. For most other products the price is proportional to their cost. But there are other factors in this product category. There are the “Big Six” makers who claim the most features and highest quality. They are usually sold by highly-educated and experienced audiologists, who also offer a bunch of related services such as measuring the customers’ needs, customizing the hearing aids (e.g., making custom-fit earpieces), and cleaning earwax from ears and the hearing aids).
The CoronaVirus affects almost everyone, but it is especially painful for professions like hairdressers and yoga instructors who come into close contact with their patients. Audiologists are similarly affected, and need to proceed carefully. So are their patients, who may need “hands-on” services such as fitting, adjusting, and earwax removal. Buyers of OTC (over the counter) models are better off, because they do not need personal contact. There are somewhat frequent ads for low-priced hearing aids from companies no one has heard of, and are risky purchases. We ourselves have been customers of two products from Sound World Solutions, some years ago it was their CS50+ PSAPs and more recently it was their HD75 hearing aids, which perform very well.