In Germany, this was prohibited over the past 800 years 
. It was decided for the first time by Frederick II, before 1250 AD.
"Many of his laws continue to influence modern attitudes, such as his prohibition on physicians acting as their own pharmacists. This was a blow to the charlatanism under which physicians diagnosed dubious maladies in order to sell useless, even dangerous ācuresā.
Most manufacturers of aids seek to have the professional dispensers push their brand over others. One way to seal the dispenserās loyalty is to offer incentives of one kind or anotherā¦usually volume discounts.
This of course is designed to warp the dispenserās recommendation from what is best for the consumer to what is best for the dispenser (and the mfg.)
Look guys and gals: These Audiologists and Dispensers retail a product just like any other merchant. We should not be surprised if some (most?) act like merchants.
Prior to 1977 the principal professional audiologist organization flat out considered it unethical for their members to sell aids. They recognized the poptential conflict of interest generated, thereby.
Some how the 1977 FDA classification of aids as Medical Devices resulted in a gold rush by dispensers to sell merchandise along with professional diagnostic/fitting services. And that ladies and gentlemen is the system we have today. Ed
As many business owners out there would know making a quid and providing an highly ethical service is not mutually exclusive. In fact i think itās more profitable in the long run to maintain high ethical standards (no matter what business type you run).
it is more profitable in the long run to maintian ethical standarts, a large % of my clients are refer by other clients.
Ed:
A friend of mine (a retired audiologist) told me that back in his days
selling 2 HI was consider unethicalā¦
I havenāt heard of any new aids for Siemens. One audi told me that they are not as they used to be. Is that true?
siemens was up for sales not long ago. It created a lot of uncertainty many of their
top minds are now working else where.
However, they are getting about 500 million for RD and to buy some distribution channelsā¦
Now THATS someone I can agree with! I get slammed often for my grudge against Siemens. But I fit many patients with their products, and besides their connectivity, their aids are almost always sub-par if you have a high-frequency loss (unless you LIKE listening to whistling and squealing all day). 
dr. amy
I absolutely agree.
Another point is that if you find an audi/dispenser who offers SEVERAL brands, its less likely that they give in to the volume discount business model. It would be nearly impossible to offer 4 different manufacturers and buy in volume from all of them!
Also, although MDs donāt own pharmacies, they are subject to being swayed in a similar fashion when sticking to specific pharmaceutical companies when prescribing. Any pharmaceutical company/manufacturer will find a way to flirt with you whether it affects your bottom line or notā¦
dr. amy
My old hearing aids from the VA are Siemens and I know what you are saying. I could hear the TV better with out my aids as well as music. I believe that due to the aids being ITE that the aids were blocking the good part of my hearing and it really did not do much for what needed to be increased other than distort it. My aids now are so great that I forget I have them. For the first time Sunday morning at Church I was able to sing the hynms and still hear the beautiful voices of the ones around me.
Thank you!!! So it was not just me being picky not liking the Pure 500ās and saying that they were tinny, unnatural sounding. 
This thread is all strictly opinions. For instance Neilk states that he liked Phonak for their better sounds. One of the reasons I rejected Phonak was because of what I considered poor sound quality. An so it goes.
It is not about what is the best or worst it is about what works for the HOH using the aids.
I based my comments on which I have found to give super repair service (rapid repair and return):
I have found Phonak and Oticon to be really excellent in this category.
My family experience with Widex is average, and Siemens is poor
I started out with Widex Senso Divaās 8 years ago, then tried America Hears, and lately have worn GN ReSound Pulseās. Tomorrow I pick up a pair GN ReSound Live 9ās. I like hassle-free heating, and thatās what the ReSoundās do for me. No switching programs or adjusting volume or any of that. Just put them on and go.
Like cvkemp said, itās all about what works for the user.
I always read this , but donāt understand the reason why something would work for me and not work for someeone else when we have the same hearing loss.
There must be something deciding on this. Maybe future researches can find out more on this.
Not from this quarter you wonāt.
I donāt rate them at all.
While we all have our pet peeves against one company or another the truth of the matter is very simple:
The Best is the HA manufacturer that:
The Worst is the HA manufacturer that
Just my 2 cents
I agree :rolleyes:
There is ALREADY a lot of research on this.
An audiogram is a very simple test : it can NOT precisely explain the cause of your hearing loss ā¦ or the best way to help deal with it.
A pure tone hearing test certainly does NOT predict how your brain handles SPEECH.
So, a hearing aid fitted to an audiogram will work well for most people ā¦ but there will always be some people for whom more fine tuning is needed ā¦ and some users will NEVER be happy with hearing aids.