U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley is confident the bipartisan Over-The-Counter Hearing Aid Act of 2017 is the right move to make access to hearing aids more affordable for Americans. Grassley, along with Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Maggie Hassan (D-N.H.) and Johnny Isakson (R-Ga.), introduced the legislation on March 17, and the bill successfully passed committee for inclusion in an upcoming FDA Reauthorization bill. Nearly 30 million American struggle with hearing loss, and Grassley says there is one primary reason these people do not use hearing aids.
A single hearing aid unit can cost as much as $2,400. Almost half of people between the ages of 70 and 79 suffer from some type of hearing loss. Grassley says the current market prevents competition from driving prices down.
The bill aims to reduce FDA regulation on hearing aids and allow them to be sold over the counter. A companion bill has been introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives by Rep. Joe Kennedy (D-Mass.) and Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.).
