Lawmakers Introduce Bipartisan Medicare Hearing Aid Benefits Bill
H.R. 244, sponsored by Rep. Debbie Dingell, could also add original Medicare coverage for routine hearing exams.
House members have overcome the current distance between Republicans and Democrats and introduced H.R. 244, the Medicare Hearing Aid Coverage Act bill.
The bill would remove a Medicare program provision that now keeps the Original Medicare program from paying for routine hearing exams or hearing aids — in spite of studies suggesting that hearing aids might reduce the risk that people with hearing problems will suffer from depression, cognitive impairment and hospitalization.
Many Medicare Advantage plans already provide some hearing aid coverage, and some Medicare supplement insurance policies offer access to hearing aid discount programs.
Rep. Debbie Dingell, D-Mich., is the lead sponsor of H.R. 244.
The current list of co-sponsors includes five other Democrats and Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick, R-Pa.
The bills is under the jurisdiction of the House Energy and Commerce Committee and the House Ways and Means Committee.
Dingell has introduced similar bills in each congress since 2015.
Pictured: Rep. Debbie Dingell, D-Mich. (Photo: Dingell)