Hi All, looks like a great forum!
Well took the plunge and went for a hearing exam today, what a nightmare.
First off, I was on time for appt. didn’t get into the booth for over an hour. Once in the booth, waited another 20 min. for a very unprofessional audiologist to do the test while taking phone calls during the test. I couldn’t tell if he was talking to me or on the phone.
We have BCBS and they go thru TruHearing. He told me that my hearing loss was just at the margin where an OTC aid would work, then proceeded to tell me what a crappy company Signia is and that if I went with them I should pay by credit card because people have problems getting a refund from them. He also said that the hearing aids from TruHearing were not ‘real’ Signias because they had features turned off.
The pitch went on that for the same price they could do some low end Oticon Real but I could always opt to spend more money.
I know some of these folks get a bad rap sometimes, but this just seemed over the top to me. Just wondering if this is normal?
Thanks for letting me let off some steam!
I’d say notably worse than average but not surprising. Signia are decent hearing aids. What’s your out of pocket cost? Considering that the person fitting your hearing aid is likely to have the biggest affect on how satisfied you are, even free might be too expensive.
You need to figure out the angle here.
My guess is that he gets more kickback with Oticon versus Signia.
Would your out of pocket cost be the same or would the Signia be cheaper because of TruHearing?
Have you considered Costco, if that’s an option?
I have BCBS and they had some coverage for my aids from Costco purchased March 2023. $600 from insurance; 1100 out of pocket. Better than 0 and my hearing specialist was straightforward with me. No games.
Out of pocket would be $999 ea. + $50 recharge option. Agreed, from this experience I’m thinking they are just $$$ driven and wouldn’t provide top notch care.
I second trying Costco if it’s a reasonable option for you. I think all of their aids are under $2000 for the pair without insurance. They won’t bill your insurance, but your insurance might reimburse you something. If you’re not satisfied, you’ve got 180 days to return for full refund.
I’ve been reading a lot about Costco here and it is an option. We are members but the only drawback is it’s a two hour drive. The 180 day trial is particularly interesting since these will be my first set. Remains to be seen if BCBS would kick in anything, looks like their deal with TruHearing is the only option.
I agree with MDB: Run, do not walk away from that provider. You could have months of hassle and wind up with the classical hearing aids left in the drawer.
Costco is a good source. However, they no longer carry Phonak rebranded aids. Some people, like me, do better with Phonak. I got KS10’s before Costco and Phonak had a hissy fit.
Yes I did run and I called TruHearing to find a new vendor and let them know what happened. It seems to me that if the store thinks TruHearing and Signia are a poor choice then they shouldn’t be representing them.
One thing I thought about after the fact was, toward the end of the conversation he asked if I was ex-military (there are a lot in this area). You could almost see him salivating when he said that, if so, the sky is the limit. Probably most of their revenue comes from veterans, much more lucrative than us TruHearing folks.
If you do decide to give Costco a try you will probably be floored at how different the hearing appointment goes.
Costco uses best practices fitting hearing aids.
My wife drives a little over an hour for her KS9 aids. We made 3 trips in 3-4 weeks then she was happy. Now either of us will drop by Costco when we just happen to be in the area to get the aids serviced. It’s typically an excuse to buy something.
Good luck getting your first hearing aids.