Very good points! I really enjoyed reading your post, and I would like to have an audiologist like yours!
I always made my hearing aids last at least 7 years or until I needed a repair and tha manufacturer said they no longer repaired the model (this happened with Phonak). Then when I started receiving Medicare and looked into Medicare advantage programs, I noticed they covered some hearing aid costs. Some cover new hearing aids every two years and some every three years. It does seem strange that they would cover them that often. Maybe it is a marketing gimic to get you to sign up with a particular Medicare plan.
I had one Widex for 10 years.
My first set of Phonak RIC I had for 8 or 9 years.
My second set of PhonK RIC I had for 3 years.
For the longest time I couldn’t hear behind me. I work on construction sites and had close calls.