The VA audiology Appointment in San Francisco was awesome. The appointment was scheduled for 2:00pm, and they were exactly on time. The doctor spent over an hour with me, asking lots of questions regarding my health and hearing history, and performing a number of tests. It probably helped that I handed her a bulleted printout with everything I thought they might want to know.
When finished, she looked at the fitting that I did based on Target audiogram direct, compared to what she measured, and made some very good suggestions. I then asked my big question “do I qualify for hearing aids from the VA,” the answer was yes. I then asked if upgrading from my Phonak bolero Marvel 90 aids would offer a big improvement, and her answer was no.
My next question was now that I am in the system, if my present hearing aids fail, or my hearing deteriorates further, what will I need to do to get new ones from the VA. The answer is if it’s over 6 months from the last visit, just make a new appointment, we will test you again, and issue new hearing aids. She also asked me to promise not to do my own programming on them😃
Anyway it was a great experience, and I will continue using the Phonak Bolero M90 PR hearing aids I already own, and I just completed a new fitting based on the new audiogram she gave me which was quite different from the one I created previously using the Target software. Before I left she saved the fitting from the used aids I had purchased off ebay to have in their system.
In about 10 days I have my first physical at the VA here in Oakland, and if it’s anything like my experience in San Francisco, I will be beyond pleased. It turned out that after having my initial appointment in San Francisco, the same audiologist does a follow up clinic every Friday in Oakland only a few miles from my home.
All I can say is I am so happy to have run across this thread, and my only regret is not knowing about these benefits earlier in my life.
If you qualify for the VA, do it all!