Did you know all Kiwis are eligible for some assistance with hearing aids? Children have devices funded up to the age of 18 or whenever they finish schooling. Adults can also access a few different types of funding including the Hearing Aid Subsidy, ACC, and Veteran’s Affairs funding, depending on eligibility.

The cost of your hearing aids includes the devices, a trial period, and a service package with your audiologist. If you are a New Zealand Permanent Resident or Citizen, you are entitled to a $511.11 (incl gst, per device) subsidy through the Ministry of Health. This is a great benefit to help cover a portion of the overall cost of your new hearing aids and is available every six years. Your audiologist deducts the subsidy from the price you pay and claims it back at the end of your trial period.

Something new in the hearing aid market is a ‘pay as you go’ model which spreads the cost of paying for hearing aids to a weekly or monthly basis. You usually sign a contract for subscription (the hearing aids are technically still owned by the clinic chain). The advantage to this model is it limits your upfront costs. It’s sort of like leasing a car versus buying one. The tricky part of this model is to be sure you understand if/when your hearing aid subsidy is claimed. If you decide to cancel your subscription after six months the hearing aid subsidy may have been claimed, which means you can’t get it again for six years!

The most important part of trialing hearing aids is finding an audiologist who is convenient, knowledgeable, explains everything clearly and gives you options. There are literally thousands of models to choose from – make sure you see an audiologist who helps you choose the right option for your budget, your lifestyle and your ears.