Health insurance companies also have to pay for more expensive hearing aids

Verdict strengthens rights of the hearing impaired

09/15/2013

Under certain circumstances, the health insurance company must pay a hearing impaired person a hearing aid that is more expensive than the stipulated fixed amount. A recent court ruling states that the funds are responsible for the most complete disability compensation.

As complete as possible disability compensation
For a hearing impaired person, the health insurance fund may also have to pay for a hearing aid that is more expensive than the stipulated fixed amount. The Landessozialgericht Niedersachsen-Bremen judged that the funds were responsible for the most complete disability compensation. (AZ: L 10 R 579/10) The judges in Celle decided in the specific case of a 61-year-old assembly worker with a congenital hearing error. The man had stayed at 2,800 euros extra for his new hearing aids, but the court found that the cashier had to take over the acquisition, because the devices enabled him to a 20 percent better hearing, as usual fixed-price models.

Duty of hearing healthcare professionals
The court refers to the decision of the Federal Social Court, which clarified already in 2009 that the coffers are responsible for the most complete disability compensation, which includes hearing impaired understanding in large rooms and ambient noise must be opened as far as possible. Hearing care acousticians are obliged to provide legally insured persons of all degrees of hearing loss appropriately without additional costs for the health insurance company. This provides for a contract on the hearing aid supply, which the health insurance companies have concluded with the Federal Guild for Hearing Aid Acousticians.

Fixed amounts for hearing aids are doubled
From November 2013, new regulations for the reimbursement of hearing aids will come into force. So applies from 01.11. This year for the hard-of-hearing insured who have reached the age of 18, a fixed amount of EUR 784.94 per ear, including VAT. Currently, the applicable fixed amount is still at 421.28 euros. This represents an approximate doubling. However, the claim to compensation for hearing impairment remains the central benchmark. Around 14 million people in Germany suffer from hearing loss. Every year around 500,000 people are provided with hearing aids. (Ad)

Picture: Hans Snoek