Hearing News Watch

Featured image for “Consumer Electronics Association calls PSAPs an affordable alternative to hearing aids”
Aug. 19, 2014

Consumer Electronics Association calls PSAPs an affordable alternative to hearing aids

David Kirkwood
By David H. Kirkwood ARLINGTON, VA—A Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) report concludes that personal sound amplification products (PSAPs) “offer a viable solution to hearing aids for consumers who have hearing difficulty.” It continues, “While consumers who suffer from more severe hearing difficulties may still require hearing aids, PSAPs offer a simpler and often less expensive alternative for those with some
Aug. 17, 2014

Starkey owner Bill Austin is a billionaire, says Bloomberg News

David Kirkwood
  EDEN PRAIRIE, MN–It’s official, says Bloomberg News: William F. “Bill” Austin, founder, CEO, and sole owner of Starkey Hearing Technologies, is a billionaire. That statement didn’t surprise people in the hearing industry, who are well aware that Austin’s company has long been by far the largest American hearing aid manufacturer, and ranks among the world’s “Big Six” hearing aid
Featured image for “Brent Edwards, a leading researcher in hearing care, joins EarLens as CTO”
Aug. 13, 2014

Brent Edwards, a leading researcher in hearing care, joins EarLens as CTO

David Kirkwood
MENLO PARK, CA—Brent Edwards, PhD, who during a decade as vice-president for research at Starkey Hearing Technologies and as founder and director of the Starkey Hearing Research Center in Berkeley helped transform the company into an industry technology leader, has joined EarLens Corporation as chief technology officer (CTO). EarLens, a privately held medical device company incorporated in 2005, makes the
Featured image for “With grant from Google, agency will study how Glass can benefit people with hearing loss”
Aug. 11, 2014

With grant from Google, agency will study how Glass can benefit people with hearing loss

David Kirkwood
BALTIMORE—When Google Glass came onto the market this spring, many technophiles celebrated the arrival of this tiny, head-mounted computer that would allow them to make phone calls, view maps, send texts, and take videos while out jogging or riding a bike. Others, though, viewed this latest futuristic product from Google with alarm, fearing for their privacy if Glass wearers started
Aug. 06, 2014

The hearing aid market is growing slowly. So, what else is new?

David Kirkwood
By David H. Kirkwood WASHINGTON, DC–Consider all the reasons why hearing aid sales should have risen through the roof over the past decade or two. For one thing, there have been dramatic improvements in technology, fueled largely by the introduction of digital signal processing in the 1990s. Powerful 21st century hearing aid hardware and software provide consumers with far more
Featured image for “Robert Panara dies; was a founder of National Technical Institute for the Deaf”
Aug. 04, 2014

Robert Panara dies; was a founder of National Technical Institute for the Deaf

David Kirkwood
ROCHESTER, NY–Robert F. Panara, a pioneer in deaf education who was a founder of both the National Technical Institute for the Deaf (NTID) and the National Theater of the Deaf in Connecticut, died here on July 20 at age 94. Despite losing his hearing when he was only 10 as a result of spinal meningitis, the Bronx, NY, native’s strong
Featured image for “CMS plans to end Medicare coverage of bone-anchored hearing systems”
Jul. 30, 2014

CMS plans to end Medicare coverage of bone-anchored hearing systems

David Kirkwood
By David H. Kirkwood   This post was updated on July 31. CENTENNIAL, CO—People with hearing loss have long complained that Medicare doesn’t cover the cost of hearing aids. Now, older Americans who need help with their hearing face the loss of coverage for another type of treatment, osseo-integrated (or bone-anchored) devices, such as the Cochlear™ Baha Implant System, which have been
Featured image for “Deaf boy escapes fire, thanks to his Ace in the hole—a hero pit bull”
Jul. 28, 2014

Deaf boy escapes fire, thanks to his Ace in the hole—a hero pit bull

David Kirkwood
  INDIANAPOLIS—Pit bulls get a lot of bad press, much of it undeserved. However, Ace, a pet owned by 13-year-old Nick Lamb of Indianapolis, did a lot to improve his breed’s image recently when he saved his master’s life. According to an AP report, Nick, who was born with a severe hearing impairment, was sound asleep on the night of
Featured image for “Starkey, Widex help fund ACAE’s mission to raise the bar in audiology education”
Jul. 23, 2014

Starkey, Widex help fund ACAE’s mission to raise the bar in audiology education

David Kirkwood
WASHINGTON, DC–The Accreditation Commission for Audiology Education (ACAE) got a much-needed boost earlier this month when Starkey Hearing Technologies, in conjunction with Widex USA, Inc., announced that they would provide $160,000 to the commission over the next three years, 2014-2016. ACAE is an independent non-profit organization that accredits university graduate programs in audiology. It was created by audiology organizations to
Featured image for “Unlike most aging rock stars with hearing loss, Kiss frontman Paul never heard well”
Jul. 21, 2014

Unlike most aging rock stars with hearing loss, Kiss frontman Paul never heard well

David Kirkwood
Pete Townshend of the Who, Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys, and Ozzy Osbourne of Black Sabbath (and the hit “reality” TV show, The Osbournes) have all told the world about suffering hearing loss during their long careers as rockers. So have their fellow Rock and Roll Hall of Famers Eric Clapton, Neil Young, and Jeff Beck. And the list