Help us get hearing aids!

My partner Inoru is deaf, and I am hard of hearing, and we both need hearing aids. For them it's a replacement for a now five year old hearing aid. For me it's my first pair.

 

And unfortunately, they're expensive.

 

I'm a semi truck driver, and I've struggled with tinnitus and with my hearing in everyday situations for years now. My tinnitus has gotten worse over the past year in particular and was interfering with our life.

 

In late February, we went to an audiologist (who is great), and I got diagnosed with moderate-severe conductive hearing loss. I also did a hearing aid evaluation, got the trial pair, and wearing them has changed my life. Of course, I also got a brand new restriction on my commercial driver's license that I need hearing aids to drive for work, so purchasing a final pair isn't something that I really have a choice about.

 

Inoru is deaf. They were first diagnosed with progressive sensorineural hearing loss at around 5 years old, and fitted with their first pair of hearing aids at that point. They now wear one hearing aid in the better ear, as the other ear is too deaf for any correction to help, and have done so for the past approximately 15 years.

So, here's where the tricky part comes up.

 

We thought we were lucky. We were originally told that the insurance was going to cover $1000 dollars per device, but because of the fact that we had not yet met the deductible for this year, that's come up short.

I have already paid $4500 and owe $900 more for my hearing aids. Inoru's aid will likely cost approximately $3200 dollars. These prices are the bundled price and include three years of service and appointments and adjustments with our very wonderful audiologist.

 

I've been saving as much as I can from work and our tax returns and all of that. It's still not enough, especially while trying to financially recover from moving several states and a period of subsequent unemployment during the pandemic.

Hearing shouldn't be a luxury expense, but that's the state of the country as it is.

 

Thank you so much!

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Thank you to everyone who donated. We've decided to close this fundraiser and open one specifically to our current needs. We love you all and appreciate the support.