FDA Gives Over-The-Counter Hearing Aids That Don’t Need Prescription Go-Ahead
Image via andras_csontos / Adobe Stock
Soon, those with mild to moderate hearing problems will be able to pick up hearing aids as easily as it is to buy a toothbrush. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has now green-lit the sale of over-the-counter hearing aids that don’t need a prescription or ear exam to use.
The regulation will take effect in about 60 days, which means shoppers could be able to buy a kit as soon as mid-October. The New York Times reports that manufacturers have been on their toes about rolling out their products ever since the FDA proposed the rule last year, so a steady supply of non-prescription hearing aids is to be expected.
Under the FDA’s estimates, nearly 30 million adults in America will stand to benefit from this broadened access. About 80% are currently choosing to live without one due to the high prices and the fact that hearing aids aren’t covered by a basic Medicare package.
Without the need to take an exam or be fitted, consumers could save about US$2,800 with the new hearing aids, federal officials say. Elsewhere, the availability of hearing aids at retail stores could also lower the risk of depression and cognitive decline—which are linked to hearing loss—in older people, the Times adds.
It’s worth re-emphasizing that these hearing aids will only be suited for people with mild to moderate hearing loss. Patients with hearing conditions that are more severe will still need a prescription.
Nicholas Reed, an audiologist at the Department of Epidemiology at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, has high hopes for how this regulation can revolutionize the design of hearing aids. “We don’t know what these companies might come up with,” says Reed. “We may literally see new ways hearing aids work, how they look.”
[via New York Times and Associated Press, cover image via andras_csontos / Adobe Stock]
