House division approves hearing aid insurance mandate

A deaf ear was not turned to an idea that products to help hear be covered by insurance.

Sponsored by Rep. Jennifer Schultz (DFL-Duluth), HF486 would open up insurance coverage for hearing aids for people of all ages. It would also allow for more hearing aids to be provided than the standard of one every three years, as long as it was ordered due to hearing changes.

The House Commerce Committee approved the bill Wednesday and referred it to the House Health and Human Services Policy Committee.

According to the Commission of the Deaf, DeafBlind & Hard of Hearing, 20 percent of Minnesotans suffer from hearing loss and very few receive coverage under their health plans for the devices which cost on average $2,000 to $4,000 per hearing aid.

Hearing aids, according to Paul Sommers, provide a better quality of life.

“They make it possible to build relationships with students,” the special education teacher testified. “Aids make also possible my opportunity to collaborate with my colleagues and [students’] families. … Without aids I can’t be part of that community.”

Sommers relies on hearing aids for both ears, but they are not covered by his insurance. So every couple of years, he and his wife, Anne, must budget replacing his regular hearing aids and the spare he keeps lest one fails while he works.

Testifiers voiced concern over the impacts on health insurance prices, particularly for small businesses.

The bill would apply to HMOs, private insurance companies, nonprofit health service corporations, and Blue Cross Blue Shield, according to nonpartisan House Research Department staff.

“Mandates are neither good nor bad, per se, but the fact is they add cost to the plans,” said Kathryn Kmit, director of policy and government affairs for the Minnesota Council of Health Plans.

Those costs could be significant when multiple mandates are being applied, Kmit warned.

The companion, SF811, is sponsored by Sen. Matt Little (DFL-Lakeville). It awaits action by the Senate Commerce and Consumer Protection Finance and Policy Committee.