The Caution of OTC Hearing Aids

By Lois Thomson

You might be surprised to hear a professional say he's not opposed to someone who wants to make an over-the-counter purchase of products he sells. But Michael J. Rametta, MS, owner of Rametta Audiology & Hearing Center, explained why he feels that way – but also added a word of caution.

The products in question are hearing aids, and Rametta confirmed, "I'm not against over-the-counter hearing instruments, because there are about 5 million people who have mild hearing loss, and we can't realistically help them in a fair, economic manner when the loss is mild."

However – as background, President Trump signed a bill passing a law that would create a category of OTC instruments that would still be constructed as hearing aids. It took until now for the guidelines to be worked out, but Rametta said in the near future, OTC hearing aids will probably be available at CVS, Walmart, and similar places at a significant savings.

The problem, according to Rametta, is that while saving lots of money is a good thing, if you are getting hearing aids and are not checked by a professional, you may not actually need the aids: "You could just have wax in your ears, or you could have a hole in your eardrum, or you could have an ear infection. You could have a whole plethora of things that medically that should be looked at by either an audiologist or a doctor before you would even think about putting anything in your ear, and that's my big precaution for people.

"You can't look in your own ear. You can take a pair of eyeglasses and look in the mirror and see everything, but you don't know what's going on in your ear. So you may not need hearing aids, and that would then be a waste of money."

He added that by not having a hearing test, a person doesn't know if what they're getting is going to be appropriate for them. "I caution people, if you're thinking of doing this, you can go to a professional, pay your co-pay, and get a hearing test. You can still walk out and go try your over-the-counter ones, but at least you'll know that medically you're safe, and you're going to walk out with a little more education and know if that is the right thing for you."

Rametta reiterated that he's not against an OTC hearing device. "I just think the FDA made it consumer friendly, but they didn't make it consumer informed."

For more information, call 724-224-6811 or visit ramettahearing.com.