scholarly journals U.S. Policy Considerations for Telehealth Provision in Audiology

2021 ◽  
Vol 42 (02) ◽  
pp. 165-174
Author(s):  
Anna Marie Jilla ◽  
Michelle L. Arnold ◽  
Erin L. Miller
Keyword(s):  
Health Policy ◽  
Hearing Aids ◽  
Insurance Coverage ◽  
Evidence Base ◽  
Medicare Beneficiaries ◽  
Balance Disorders ◽  
Comprehensive Coverage

AbstractThe demand for telehealth services will continue to grow alongside an increased need for audiology services among both children and adults. Insurance coverage policies for audiologic services are specific to each payer and vary widely in the level of coverage provided for both in-person and telehealth-based audiology services. While benefits for children are fairly comprehensive, coverage for audiology services for adults is generally poor. Traditional Medicare does not cover hearing aids or other rehabilitative audiologic services, and other payer policies vary widely. Lack of benefits for hearing and balance services is inconsistent with the evidence base and leaves many beneficiaries without access to meaningful care for hearing and balance disorders, which are highly prevalent among and disproportionately affect Medicare beneficiaries. The purpose of this article is to discuss regulatory and reimbursement considerations for telehealth provision in audiology and elucidate opportunities to influence related health policy at both state and federal levels.

Introduction

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jessica M. Mulligan ◽  
Heide Castañeda
Keyword(s):  
Health Policy ◽  
Health Insurance ◽  
Affordable Care Act ◽  
Insurance Coverage ◽  
Health Insurance Coverage ◽  
Demographic Characteristics ◽  
Social Identities ◽  
Immigration Status ◽  
Anthropological Approach ◽  
The Law

In this chapter, Jessica M. Mulligan and Heide Castañeda provide an overview of the Affordable Care Act focused on the coverage expansions that were at the heart of the law. The authors outline the ethnographic methods used in the book, arguing that an anthropological approach provides an experience-near perspective on implementation that too often is absent in mainstream treatments of health policy. The central theoretical concerns of the book are also introduced: stratified citizenship, risk, and responsibility. The term stratified citizenship describes how certain social identities and demographic characteristics—such as immigration status, income, gender, race, and state of residence—mediated how people were included or excluded from health insurance coverage through the ACA. Exposure to risks as well as inclusion in the new responsibilities created by the law were also unequally distributed.

scholarly journals INNOVATIVE POLICIES AND TECHNOLOGIES TO INCREASE ACCESS TO HEARING AIDS FOR ADULTS

2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. S828-S829
Author(s):  
Michael Yong ◽  
Amber Willink ◽  
Catherine McMahon ◽  
Bradley McPherson ◽  
Carrie L Nieman ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Hearing Loss ◽  
Hearing Aids ◽  
Total Population ◽  
Hearing Aid ◽  
Insurance Coverage ◽  
Current State ◽  
Hearing Aid Use ◽  
Age Related ◽  
The World ◽  
Age Related Hearing Loss

Abstract As the proportion of older adults in the world’s total population continues to grow, the deleterious downstream health economic outcomes of age-related hearing loss are steadily becoming more prevalent. While recent research has shown that age-related hearing loss is the single greatest modifiable risk factor for dementia, the rate of hearing aid use remains low in many countries across the globe. Reasons for poor uptake are multifactorial and likely involve a combination of factors, ranging from increasing costs of hearing aid technology to lack of widespread insurance coverage. This paper aims to first identify the current state of hearing aid access across the world using eight representative countries as examples. We then provide recommendations on how to facilitate greater access to hearing aids for consumers by addressing areas in regulation, technology, reimbursement, and workforce.

Do patents impede the provision of genetic tests in Australia?

2013 ◽  
Vol 37 (3) ◽  
pp. 281 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dianne Nicol ◽  
John Liddicoat
Keyword(s):  
Breast Cancer ◽  
Health Policy ◽  
Genetic Testing ◽  
Evidence Base ◽  
Public Hospitals ◽  
Law Reform ◽  
Genetic Tests ◽  
The Future ◽  
Patent Enforcement ◽  
The Impact

Objective. Health policy and law reform agencies lack a sound evidence base of the impacts of patents on innovation and access to healthcare to assist them in their deliberations. This paper reports the results of a survey of managers of Australian genetic testing laboratories that asked a series of questions relating to the tests they perform, whether they pay to access patented inventions and whether they have received notifications from patent holders about patents associated with particular tests. Results. Some diagnostics facilities are exposed to patent costs, but they are all located in the private sector. No public hospitals reported paying licence fees or royalties beyond those included in the price of commercial test kits. Some respondents reported having received enforcement notices from patent holders, but almost all related to the widely known breast cancer-associated patents. Respondents were also asked for their views on the most effective mechanisms to protect their ability to provide genetic tests now and in the future. Going to the media, paying licence fees, ignoring patent rights and relying on the government to take action were widely seen as most effective. Litigation and applications for compulsory licences were seen as some of the least effective mechanisms. Conclusion. These results provide an evidence base for development of health policy and law reform. What is known about the topic? The impact of patents on the delivery of genetic testing services remains unclear in Australia. What does this paper add? The survey reported in this paper suggests that, aside from well-known enforcement actions relating to the breast cancer associated patents, there is little evidence that providers of genetic testing services are being exposed to aggressive patent-enforcement practices. What are the implications for practitioners? Although patent-enforcement actions may increase in the future, a range of strategies are available to providers of testing services to protect them against adverse consequences of such actions. There are ongoing law reform activities aimed at improving these strategies.

scholarly journals COST-BENEFIT ANALYSIS OF HEARING CARE SERVICES AMONG MEDICARE BENEFICIARIES WITH HEARING AIDS

2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. S43-S44
Author(s):  
Amber Willink ◽  
Amber Willink ◽  
Nicholas S Reed ◽  
Frank R Lin
Keyword(s):  
Older Adults ◽  
Hearing Aids ◽  
Cost Benefit Analysis ◽  
Skilled Nursing Facility ◽  
Medicare Beneficiaries ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Care Services ◽  
Medicare Program ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Medicare Spending

Abstract Hearing care services for older adults with hearing aids are underutilized and are not covered by the Medicare program. Little information exists to the value of hearing care services for older adults with hearing aids. Using the Medicare Current Beneficiary Survey 2013, we conducted a cross-sectional analysis of the impact of hearing care services use on Medicare spending among those with hearing aids. Older Medicare beneficiaries with hearing aids that received hearing care services in the previous 12 months were propensity score matched to those who did not receive services. Average annual Medicare spending was $8196 (CI:$6670-$9723) among Medicare beneficiaries who used hearing care services and $10,709 (CI:$8878-12541) among matched controls. Spending differences were driven by higher skilled nursing facility and home health spending among matched controls. Increasing access to hearing care services among Medicare beneficiaries with hearing aids may provide value to the health care system and Medicare program.

Policy for Child Health in the United Kingdom

PEDIATRICS ◽  
2003 ◽  
Vol 112 (Supplement_3) ◽  
pp. 722-724
Author(s):  
Catherine Law
Keyword(s):  
Health Policy ◽  
Child Health ◽  
Research Evidence ◽  
Scientific Evidence ◽  
Evidence Base ◽  
Personal Perspective ◽  
The United Kingdom ◽  
Policy Agendas ◽  
Further Development ◽  
Special Case

The Issue. It is argued that health policy is determined by many influences, including research evidence. However, the evidence base needs further development if it is to be used effectively. If health policy is to promote equity in child health, then it must not be confined to health services. This article is, essentially, a personal perspective on UK health policy for children, particularly as it relates to inequalities in health and using scientific evidence. Many issues are general and apply to all health policy, including child health. Furthermore, in cases in which children can be included in mainstream policy agendas, we may make faster progress in improving child health than when we have to make a special case.

Differential diagnosis of tinnitus

2022 ◽  
pp. 44-47
Author(s):  
Lev Borisovich Shlopak ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Hearing Loss ◽  
Hearing Aids ◽  
Behavioral Therapy ◽  
Evidence Base ◽  
Anxiety And Depression ◽  
Surgical Interventions ◽  
Sound Therapy ◽  
Drug Treatments ◽  
Ototoxic Drugs ◽  
Broadband Sound

Tinnitus is a common clinical symptomthat can be debilitating. Risk factors forits development are hearing loss, use of ototoxic drugs, head injury and depression. At the onset of the disease, the likelihood of ear pathology, the presence of anxiety and depression should be considered. There are no effective drug treatments for tinnitus, although a number of scientific studies are ongoing to determine the mechanisms of the development of this condition and to search for possible options for its treatment. When ear pathology is detected, surgical interventions can be effective, but tinnitus associated with this disease persists. Available treatment approaches include hearing aids for diagnosed hearing loss (even mild or unilateral), broadband sound therapy, and counseling. Cognitive-behavioral therapy is indicated for some patients, but availability remains inadequate. The evidence base is most significant for the combination of sound therapy and CBT-based counseling, although clinical trials are complicated by the heterogeneity of the tinnitus patient population.

scholarly journals Disruptive Hearing Technologies and Mild Sensorineural Hearing Loss I: Accessibility and Affordability Issues

2018 ◽  
Vol 39 (02) ◽  
pp. 135-145 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carole Johnson ◽  
Jeffrey Danhauer ◽  
Anna Jilla
Keyword(s):  
Hearing Loss ◽  
Hearing Aids ◽  
Ethical Issues ◽  
Insurance Coverage ◽  
Historical Context ◽  
Disruptive Technology ◽  
Relevant Research ◽  
Over The Counter ◽  
New Class ◽  
Reducing Costs

AbstractLimited accessibility to and affordability of hearing health care (HHC) and hearing aids (HAs) are two reasons why people do not seek treatment for their hearing losses. This article is the first in a series of two and discusses affordability issues (i.e., billing models, cost-effectiveness, insurance coverage, and reimbursement) related to and provides a historical context for the Over-the-Counter Hearing Aid Act of 2017. This piece of legislation supports development of a new class of over-the-counter HAs that represents a disruptive technology that may transform the HHC industry by reducing costs specific to the device. A discussion of ethical issues and the importance of using evidence-based practice guidelines set the stage for the second article in this series, which reviews relevant research on issues pertaining to persons with mild hearing loss.

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