Petition supports bill for insurance, Medicaid to pay for hearing aids
March 10, 2021 | By Laura SiegelTo the Community:
Our state Rep. Theresa Wood drafted H.266, the Hearing Aid Bill. For that, I am truly thankful she did that because it will have a huge impact on many Vermonters' lives. We have over 70,000 Vermonters who are hard of hearing, several hundreds of Deaf people including children who could benefit from this as well.
The bill proposes to require Medicaid, the State Employees Health Plan, and large group health insurance plans to provide coverage for hearing aids beginning in plan year 2022. You can find the bill and track it in the Legislature at this link: legislature.vermont.gov/bill/status/2022/H.266.
It was introduced on Feb. 16 and is in the House Committee on Health Care.
The Hear! Hear! Hearing Aid Coalition (a group consisting of strong supporters for this bill) has been reaching out to the community at large to either submit a video about your experience with hearing loss and why you think this bill should be supported or sign a petition. Vermont is the only state in New England that doesn’t have hearing aid coverage by private insurance.
The link to the Hearing Aid Bill petition can be found by clicking here.
After being diagnosed with a bilateral sensorineural severe-to-profound hearing loss at the age of 16 months old, I was grateful for the opportunity to wear hearing aids. It is suspected my hearing loss is due to an overdose of gentamicin. I am the first in my family to suffer a hearing loss. No one in my family signs, so that forces me to learn to speak. If I wasn’t able to obtain hearing aids without financial struggles, I don’t think I would be the person I am today. I have the ability to both speak and sign because of my hearing aids. It enabled my ability to live independently without relying on my family to survive in this hearing world.
As an ambassador and supporter for the Deaf, Hard-of-Hearing, and Deaf Blind community, I have heard and seen many who struggled to obtain hearing aids because of financial burdens. With this coverage, it will allow people to thrive emotionally and mentally.
It would be very helpful for people who are interested to contact your legislators to tell them what hearing aid coverage means to you or those you work with or know. It will allow children to stay in school and succeed academically. It will allow adults to get employment. It will enable more people to avoid isolation. It will promote and improve the quality of Vermonters’ lives by having this coverage knowing they can get hearing aids without struggles and can live their lives at ease.
Laura Siegel
Waterbury