Acadia Hearing Center Payments
Your hearing test
Most insurance plans including Medicare will pay for comprehensive hearing testing BY AN AUDIOLOGIST provided a referral from your family physician is received. We are participating providers with numerous health plans including Aetna, Anthem and others. We're happy to assist you with obtaining the necessary documentation in order to ensure your insurance coverage.
Non-audiologists who sell hearing aids simply wrap their costs for hearing screening into the prices they charge as only Audiologists are elegible for medical insurance reimbursement. Hearing aid salespeople have one goal: to sell you a hearing aid. They're happy to give you a free test - and tell you how badly you need to buy from them. An Audiologist has a professional obligation to act in YOUR best interests and we'll tell you if you don't need a hearing aid right now. We'd rather you come back in a few years than buy something and be unhappy.
Your hearing aid(s)
The most common question we're asked is whether insurance, Medicare, or MaineCare/Medicaid will pay for all or a portion of a hearing aid. Neither Medicare nor MaineCare pay for adult hearing aids. Period!
There are a some insurance policies that provide a hearing aid benefit. More and more, we also find that some insurers are providing a hearing aid benefit through various plans which oversee and manage the process of purchasing. We participate with most of these programs. Contact your insurer for more information.
Financing
We're sometimes asked if we offer financing programs. At present, we do not. Here's why: unlike low-rate credit cards or bank loans, nearly all healthcare payment credit companies charge - comparatively - VERY high rates of interest. When a patient defaults, the card company returns to the seller to recoup their money. Facing such undeterminable potential losses, the seller must - if they want to stay in business - increase their prices considerably 'just in case'. As a result, the cost for a hearing aid can easily - and transparently - be increased by 20% or more. We simply do not wish to go down this path.
We normally ask for 50% down at the time you receive your hearing aid. You'll be asked to sign a contract as required by Maine state law. It explains that you have a 30 day trial period with a full refund and provides the name, model, and serial number of your hearing aid(s). We will generally see you at least once or twice during this trial period to see how you are getting along and to make adjustments as necessary. There is no charge for these visits. At the end of your trial period, you will be asked to sign the contract again, indicating your satisfaction. We look for payment of the balance due at that time unless other arrangements have been made.
Your hidden savings!
Many hearing aid dispensers will charge you every time you see them after the trial period. We don't. In fact, we encourage you to visit us at least twice each year for a cleaning and 'tune-up' of your hearing aid. As long as you own the aid, these visits will be free. Should you damage your aid (breaking the battery door, for example), there may be a small charge for the work done but there is NEVER a charge for your regular/routine maintenance. Over the lifetime of a hearing aid, this can save you hundreds of dollars compared with others.* If your hearing aid doesn't seem to be working quite as well as when you first purchased it, let us know. It might be that it's plugged with wax or it could be that your hearing is diminishing and your hearing aid needs adjustment. When we sell hearing aids, we try to make sure that it will last but - just like a car - there will be a time when you'll need or want to get something new. Let us know and we'll help.
*Note that purchases made through insurance company/affinity plans may have different terms
