Help! I can't afford to buy hearing aids

Strange this is the case- I do have one good thing - Penn care though other than the eye doc and depression nurse has My Chart app which allows me to avoid the phone to do appts and other matters. Finally because of the virus my prescription Nurse practitioner allowed me to access her and the case manager by email- they were going to call me- I though did research and found her email and say no phone call. She and the Case manager stages I was the first person to successfully do this to their surprise . I was able to get away with it. I have asked before the virus for email success to no avail. Crazy this has to happen for me to succeed. I have nurse staff for a number of years fighting for me to contract by email or text. Both eye and depression folks were not accessible by email/ text . Now just the eye doctor- geez I will get this someday- stubborn Sue

@bookysue
Hi to you and everyone else about hearing on the phone.
Please load INNOCAPTION+ app on your phones. If you have not heard of it go online and research it. It’s free and has an easy sign up. Any calls that come into your cell or that you make are captioned and you can also
hear the voice (or not). Voice mail is captioned.

Depending on your cell phone carrier you can have calls placed to your cell number that are transferred immediately to the Innocaption+ number that is assigned to you. Just swipe to open the app and answer the call. I have used it for years. The latest update allows you to have both operators who are captioning and will switch over to voice recognition when all operators are busy.
Everyone who has a landline should also have either a Captel phone or Caption Call phone. There is no reason for you to be at a disadvantage and dependent on someone else unless you live in a remote area with little or no WiFi.

FL Mary

No landline- I have InnoCaption- doesn’t work 100 percent for me . Thanks though

@bookysue
Darn, I’m sorry to hear that about INNOCAPTION. Have you ever tried emailing customer support. I have on several occasions and they were fast in their response and very helpful. Do you have any idea why it doesn’t work all the time? I’m so dependent on that app.

FL Mary

They are very responsive- and they acted very quickly - even made change in the early days on my comments- So it’s me not them- thanks

In the state where I live we have a Division of Vocational Rehabilitation program. It is run by the state. If your hearing disability is keeping you from working this program will give you everything you need to get into the workforce again free of charge, including not only the hearing aids but also educational training and other things that you may need while you are transitioning back into the workforce. If you are unable to take this route, I would still recommend making an appointment with a counselor of this program who would most likely know of referrals to other areas of help that would benefit you. Best Wishes

I just heard a nice presentation from the Lions Sight and Hearing Foundation of Southern California. They help people with hearing and vision problems to get glasses and hearing aids. Contact them at lshf.org and see if they can refer you to the Lions Sight & Hearing in your area. Don't give up.

@lamb2828 Your problem is very common and unfortunate. There are a couple of choices that I am aware of. One is to contact your state's Office of Deaf and Hard of Hearing. They sometimes have connections to groups (like the Lions Club or Rotary) that have hearing aids as one of their projects. The 2nd is Starkey Hearing Aids. Starkey has a Foundation that it sponsors whose mission is to bring hearing assistance to those who can't afford them. They do it internationally as well as domestically. The Domestic group is called the Hear Now Program. You have to qualify as being financially in need and complete an application. The link is https://www.starkeyhearingfoundation.org/Hearing-Assistance.

The 3rd option is called Hearing The Call and is a national organization of audiologists with the same goal - finding a way together hearing assistance to those who can't afford them. There is a Hearing The Call chapter in Sarasota. It looks like the only one in FLA that I could find. Its link ishttps://hearingthecall.org/hearcare/ What is different about them is they arrange to find affordable hearing aids for those that qualify under the financial requirements but they also ask the recipient to give back thru community service hours.

I hope you find help there one of these groups. Lack of insurance for HA's is a serious problem and several groups, including HLAA of which I am a member, are working with Congress to try to get changes to the Medicare laws. Unfortunately with all that is going on in the world right now, this will move to the back burner again. Good luck. Mike

I am partially deaf with my left ear,and loosing my hearing with my right ear also.I had my hearing tested ,i didn't realize my hearing lose was that bad..I have a job that requires me to be able to hear,I can not afford to buy the hearing aids,what I make at my job barely takes care of my rent and electric.Medicare will not cover the cost.I am 68 years old,and I will eventually loose my job if I can not hear,Please can someone help, tell me where I can get the help I desperately need. I live in Palm Bay ,Florida Brevard County. Thank you for the ones that can help me

Hi @lamb2828, I'd like to add my welcome. You'll notice that I moved your message to this existing discussion where @hammock2015 also asked about how to afford hearing aids. Click VIEW & REPLY to scroll through the helpful responses from other members.

@mikepa offered a very comprehensive reply with organizations to contact in your state. I hope you'll return to let us know what you find out.