primitive wants insurance to pay for poor life-style decision

[franksolich]

http://www.democraticunderground.com/10025502901

Oh my.

NRaleighLiberal (35,257 posts)    Mon Sep 8, 2014, 12:41 AM

Yes, I am a boomer. Played in a rock band. And - the hearing is starting to go. Why isn't hearing

loss covered by insurance? I've done some searching around on that one - seems like a handicap to me, and when you think about some other things that are covered, it surprises me that there isn't a bigger issue around it not being covered. It's one of those things you don't think about - until it happens to you.
 
Here's a pretty good read for why insurance companies don't cover the issue.

http://califmedicineman.blogspot.com/2007/12/why-insurance-companies-dont-pay-for.html

franksolich: ^^^recommended reading; it's good

It seemed to me that stem cell research is just the ticket for dealing with the underlying causes of hearing loss, so I googled around a bit and found that some major universities have programs dealing with this - this is one of the links I was reading
 
http://hearinghealthfoundation.org/curing_hearing_loss

At 58, I am facing the need soon for some hearing help for one ear at least (my patient wife walks on that side during our dog walks, and we've worked out the code for when I need her to speak up with out being a total pain about it!). My ear doc says part of it is genetic (both my grandparents were quite deaf), part of it was (is!) my love of loud music - including standing in front of the amp when I played the guitar in my 14 to 30 years. And attended lots of really loud concerts.
 
But I've also heard that they are really expensive and don't work all that well (the background noise issue and all).
 
Who is with me on this? Speak up, now! How are you dealing with it - esp. the great cost involved by actually doing something about it?

NYC_SKP (61,027 posts)    Mon Sep 8, 2014, 12:55 AM

1. Not suffering yet as much as you, but might be before long.

I'm one year your junior, and am a bit hard of hearing. Also suffered ruptured ear drums as a child.
 
Don't know about the insurance part but fairly well versed on the hearing aid costs part of it.
 
In ear aids cost literally thousands. Some money can be saved at Costco and other discounters, but I'll bet a resourceful person can find them off the shelf for just a few hundred.
 
Eyeglasses have been getting out of hand too,* a different story, I had lenses made by a father daughter place in one day for about $70 bucks, Lens Crafters wanted several hundred.
 
It's a racket.

*so have salaries and fringe benefits for desk-sitting governmental bureaurcrats, so what's the big deal here?

blm (91,892 posts)    Mon Sep 8, 2014, 04:22 PM

29. Used to work with music industry for years in LA-NY. Most everyone of our age

group there who worked in those days has hearing loss. Me, included.

I'm with you - it should definitely be covered by insurance.

<<<thinks the bowel movement primitive ^^^ should have to suffer for poor life-style choices.

[Gina]

an ounce of prevention........................

[BlueStateSaint]

an ounce of prevention........................

Exactly.  One of the things that I wish I had done differently, when I was a young cavalry officer, was to use earplugs all of the time on the tank/Bradley ranges.  I didn't.  I have some ringing, and some hearing loss.

It's a problem of my doing.  Hence, insurance probably wouldn't cover it.

[JohnnyReb]

Exactly.  One of the things that I wish I had done differently, when I was a young cavalry officer, was to use earplugs all of the time on the tank/Bradley ranges.  I didn't.  I have some ringing, and some hearing loss.

It's a problem of my doing.  Hence, insurance probably wouldn't cover it.

Mine is from farm and heavy equipment without mufflers that started in childhood.

Nothing like the sound of an old 2-cycle DETROIT sans muffler. I can almost not hear it now.

[DumbAss Tanker]

I'm sure the useless stupid slug will be filing for disability when he tires of trying to get free hearing aids and/or surgery from his insurer.

[franksolich]

I'm sure the useless stupid slug will be filing for disability when he tires of trying to get free hearing aids and/or surgery from his insurer.

I dunno if you can even speculate on why this is, given that laws vary so much, but anyway, when I was younger, I once proposed to a Nebraska state senator that automotive insurance policies be written in such a way that if one were in an accident and not wearing a seat-belt, such injuries to person and property wouldn't be covered.

A good way to encourage the use of seat-belts, I thought.

<<<enthusiastic supporter of wearing seat-belts.

And this way, those of us who practice safe habits wouldn't be having to pay the expenses for those who don't (i.e., in the form of lower insurance premiums).

I was told such an exclusion would be "illegal" in Nebraska--and just about everywhere else.

I was also told "why," but there being a lot of people around and myself being deaf, I didn't "get" it, and let it go.

[Gina]

Think about all the dumbasses that listen to rap in their cars full blast. 

[SVPete]

Think about all the dumbasses that listen to rap in their cars full blast.

Not to mention the poor innocents stuck next to them at stoplights!