Hearing Economics

Economics is all about data collection–lots and lots of data.  To what end, you may ask?  The idea is that if you have enough data on all possible responses in the market, you can probably develop models that will predict consequences of what you do right now.  For instance, wouldn’t you like a model that lets you know the consequences of raising

  Back to the Future:  Current Thinking at the FDA and in the Marketplace The burden of regulation continues to haunt the hearing aid industry and cost consumers.  Notwithstanding the entrenched regulatory mentality described in Parts 5 and 6 of this series, there were two interesting Citizen’s Petitions that were filed with the FDA in 2003.  Their purposes were to

The 1977 Final Rule Revisited… Revisited… Revisited …and Kept   Technological progress and market needs moved the industry forward, but the Final Rule remained as stated in 1977.  For example, in 1985, the FDA approved the Nuclear 22 Channel Cochlear Implant system for general use in adult patients with profound hearing loss after the device had spent 10 years in

My feng sui is restored, thanks to the most unlikely of sources…. My state government!  At the end of 2010, I wrote about extreme discomfort brought about by the continuing education process in my State for dispensing audiologists, which required the craft skills of a kindergarten aide and not much else.  The worst part, however, was the discovery that my

The FDA Regulation: 1977 Final Rule By 1977, the momentum driving hearing aids into the medical device arena was unstoppable. On Feb. 15, 1977, the FDA published its Final Rule, which made hearing aids restricted devices, promulgated regulations governing professional and patient labeling, and set forth conditions for the sale of hearing aids.1 The detail and scope of the Final

 “Dress up and put on diamonds even to answer the phone, as it changes the way you are.”  Mae West Let’s take a break from the hearing aid history series and go check out the future of hearing aids. It’s probably safe to say that all economists agree that technology drives production and prosperity.  In most cases, prosperity translates into improvements

The evolution of the hearing aid industry sketched out in parts 1-3 of this post series is that of a consumer product.  From hand to horn to telephone-like device, the hearing aid was developed and thought of by manufacturers and consumers alike as an appliance that boosted sound.  In that regard, hearing aids were a closer fit to the personal stereo niche

The US Hearing Aid Industry Comes Under Scrutiny and Regulation by the FTC1 The industry’s expanding sales and capital were the result of technological innovation as well as intense marketing campaigns by the manufacturers.   Celebrity marketing and fake testimonials were a big part of these campaigns.  Luminaries ranging from Bob Hope to Bernard Baruch were used to endorse the products.

Electronic Hearing Aids At the turn of the 19th century, hearing aids underwent a technological revolution by emulating telephone technology.  The first electronic hearing aids used carbon microphones that modulated electrical current in response to sound pressure variations. Hearing Aids Become a Business Batteries and electronic components created a market for wearable amplification among people with hearing loss. Hearing aid

Hearing aids are categorized as Class 1 or Class 2 medical devices by the Food and Drug Administration. The large majority of hearing aids are in the Class 1 category, which means they are exempted from the premarket notification and FDA clearance requirement. Hearing aid manufacturers are required to register their establishments and bring their products into compliance with a