@josmay Don't fret about the possible lack of telecoils in your new aids. Audiologists have not done a good job educating us about the benefits of T-coils. Even though I should have been wearing hearing aids my whole life (hereditary on my father's side), I didn't get my first aid until I was 21. The aid was analog. Back then, as far as I know, all hearing aids had the telecoil. It was the norm. All telephones were land line compatible and had induction loops. Our hearing aids automatically detected the signal. The aids automatically switched the hearing aid microphone off and received the signal from the telephone loop. When you were done with the phone call, the hearing aids automatically switched off the induction loop pickup and switched the microphones back in. So, why the push to phase out telecoils? I can think of several. First, there is a stigma with wearing hearing aids. People do not want others to know they don't hear well so the manufacturers have opted for smaller devices so that aids can hide inside the ear canal. With smaller devices, there are tradeoffs. Components no longer fit. The telecoil has been the most expendable. Second, analog aids (at least professionally fit) have gone the way of the dinosaur. The telecoil, if it is installed, has to be enabled in the software by the audiologist. This is the most disturbing part for me. The audiologist has to spend more time to program the telecoil in. Plus, once they program for the telecoil, we have to test it. Back in the day, the audiologist just told us to pick up the phone in their office and call someone. What a joke. Some audiologist offices have an induction loop so that we don't have to bother someone. Ironically, some phones in audiologist offices do not have an induction loop. Regardless, time to fit for a telecoil increased. Third, cell phones have contributed to the reduction of telecoils. We hear better when we use both ears. Many use the cell phone in speaker mode, making the telecoil redundant. However, we still need compatibility between the cell phone and the hearing aid. Hence, the M/T ratings on cell phones. That will be a future discussion.
To get back to your concern about a lack of telecoil, there is a possible solution. Venues that have a loop system, should have a loop receiver. Instead of simply turning on your telecoil program, you will have to get the sound from the receiver to your ears. This is the tricky part. If you are given earbuds, they are useless unless you can hear okay using them. A better solution would be headphones that can be placed over the hearing aids so that we can take advantage of the technology inside the aids. Back in the day, placing headphones over my aids only resulted in feedback squeals. Hearing aid technology has gotten better so the feedback is not always a factor.
As with most of our health care, we have to be advocates for what we want. If you go into a venue that is not accessible, politely tell them. They should have resources to contact to help with a solution. Also, ask your audiologist if your hearing aids have a telecoil. They may be in there, but just not enabled.
Tony in Michigan