Couple Considers Divorce to get Implant for Daughter

A Utah couple says they considered getting a divorce just so their insurance company would pay for their 9-year-old daughter a cochlear implant. John and Jennifer Meredith tell Action News Now, "We had no desire to get divorced (but) we couldn't keep putting that off. She's completely deaf in her right ear and she's mostly deaf in her left ear." Read more from ANN here and FOX-8 here. Below is a video from KSL-TV. For captioning, click here.

Insurer Agrees to pay for Boy's Implant

An insurance company will pay for the cochlear implant surgery of a 5-year-old Georgia boy. The family of Carson Rubin of Monroe (east of Atlanta) was first told by Coventry Health Care it would not do so. The family went ahead and began trying to raise the money. Coventry says it will also change its group policy to cover cochlear implants, according to Carson's mother. His surgery is now scheduled for April 19. A petition on Change.org got more than 100,000 signatures, a story that was picked up by newspapers and TV stations. Carson was born with auditory neuropathy, which left him legally deaf. Find out more about the Rubins on their Facebook page here.

The Insurance Problem

CNN takes a look at hearing loss and insurance here.

Insurance Coverage for Hearing Aids

Health benefits plans in 19 states are required to pay for hearing aids – but 16 of these only cover children. And just three states require coverage for both children and adults. Some insurance plans are exempt from these state rules and the specifics vary from state to state.

Health benefits plans must pay for children’s hearing aids in these states: Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Minnesota, Missouri, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oregon, and Tennessee.

The three states requiring coverage for both children and adults are: Arkansas, New Hampshire and Rhode Island. Wisconsin is the only state that requires coverage for both hearing aids and cochlear implants for children.

Hearing Aids & Insurance

Most private insurance plans (and Medicare) will not pay for hearing aids, just for a doctor visit to decide if an aid is needed or not. Cochlear implants are an exception - but only if you have severe hearing loss. Patients covered by Veterans Affairs programs and some federal employee insurance may get some help. But even private plans that DO cover hearing aids will often only give less than $1000 toward the cost. Hearing aids generally run about $2,000 each.

First State to Require Implant Coverage

Wisconsin is one step closer to becoming the first state to require insurance companies to cover cochlear implants for children. Both houses of the legislature approved the bill this week and the governor is expected to sign it into law. It also requires insurance companies to cover some hearing aid costs. Some Republican lawmakers complained that the new requirement will drive up the cost of insurance for small businesses. But supporters say it ultimately saves taxpayers money by cutting special education costs. The new law would affect those covered by private insurance plans but not self-funded plans. Wisconsin has more than 1200 deaf children and about a third of them already have implants.

State Lawmakers Tackle Insurance Woes

A bill moving through the Wisconsin legislator would ensure insurance coverage for hearing aids and cochlear implants for children. A state Senate committee approved the measure on a 6-1 vote. It now moves to the full Senate for consideration. One of the considerations motivating lawmakers: Some health insurance companies consider cochlear implant surgery a cosmetic choice.

Grace's Law

A bill making its way through the New Jersey legislature would require health insurance companies to provide $1000 in coverage for hearing aids every two years for children under age of 16. Grace’s Law is named for Grace Gleba. The 8-year-old girl has a severe hearing impairment. Her mother, Jeanine Gleba started lobbying lawmakers to pass the bill nine years ago. It’s now in the Senate Appropriations Committee.

Making Insurance Co’s Pay for Implants

State Lawmakers in Wisconsin are considering passing a law that would require insurance companies in the state to cover the cost of hearing aids and cochlear implants for children under the age of 11. A representative for Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce says the passage of Assembly Bill 133 would raise the cost of insurance for everyone in Wisconsin. The bill has already passed unanimously in the state Senate and awaits a vote by the Assembly.