Hearing News Watch

WASHINGTON, DC–One of the many free resources available to hearing health professionals from the Better Hearing Institute (BHI) is a collection of syndicated articles that practitioners can use to inform people in their communities about hearing loss and how to prevent and/or treat it. The Better Hearing Institute has developed a new syndicated article summarizing the link between chronic diseases

MINNEAPOLIS–Starkey Laboratories, the largest U.S.-based hearing aid manufacturer, has been named an International CES Innovations 2012 Design and Engineering Awards Honoree for its AMP™ hearing aid. This is the fourth consecutive year Starkey has been so honored, having previously won for SoundLens™, S Series™ with Sweep™ Technology, and Zon™. The CES is the pre-eminent trade association promoting growth in the

NAERUM, DK – The Ida Institute has announced the development of a new counseling tool that provides a patient-centered approach to defining living well for a variety of hearing care patients in a range of clinical settings. Entitled Living Well – Managing Hearing Loss in Daily Life, this innovative tool takes into consideration that each person’s experience with hearing loss

ALBUQUERQUE, NM–The Professional Business Women-Albuquerque chapter has selected an executive of a hearing care practice as “Albuquerque Business Woman of the Year.” Honored was Naina Ballachanda, chief financial officer of Premier Hearing Center, which serves thousands of patients with hearing loss from five locations New Mexico, Arizona, and Texas. In the award citation, Ballachanda was described as a “strong female

By David H. Kirkwood  TRENTON, NJ—The characteristically fragmented and fractious hearing healthcare field has suddenly found something to bring it together: the announcement by UnitedHealthcare (UHC), among other companies, that it will sell hearing aids directly to consumers without the involvement of licensed hearing professionals. Since October 3, when hi HealthInnovations™, a division of UHC, began offering hearing aids retailing

LONDON—Two studies, run in tandem, have found that 71% of adults in the United Kingdom can’t always understand clearly what is said on television. One study was a joint project of the Danish hearing aid manufacturer, Widex, and Britain’s Channel 4. The other was undertaken by the British Broadcasting Company (BBC). One purpose of the studies was to test the

NEW YORK—Arielle Schacter, a contributor to the Hearing Views section of Hearinghealthmatters.org (see her October 12 post), has been selected by Glamour magazine as one of “21 Amazing Young Women of 2011.” Schacter, a 17-year-old high school senior in New York City, has been hard of hearing since early childhood. Rather than hold her back, her hearing loss has inspired

HANNOVER, GERMANY–An international panel of judges has selected Oticon Medical’s Ponto Pro Power to receive a 2012 iF Product Design Award. Founded in 1953, the iF International Forum Design Awards program recognizes innovative product design. A jury of designers and entrepreneurs selected the 2012 recipients from among entries originating from more than 48 countries. The Ponto Pro Power, a digital

LEXINGTON, KY–Hours after Hearing News Watch posted its article on growing opposition to United Healthcare’s business model, Stephanie Czuhajewski, executive director of the Academy of Doctors of Audiology, e-mailed a letter to its members. Excerpts follow: ADA Members, We wanted to provide you with an update regarding ADA’s plan of action to address member concerns regarding the October 3rd United

Opposition is continuing to build to the sale of hearing aids directly to consumers via the Internet, which would bypass the role of the licensed hearing care professional. Two companies—hi HealthInnovations, part of UnitedHealth Group, and Audiotoniq—have announced plans to distribute hearing aids this way. Their products will be priced at under $1000, much less than the average price of