Over The Counter Hearing Aids Promise to Reduce Accessibility Costs

March 2018 – Nuheara, a small Australian company, has designed its newest generation of the IQBuds headphones, the IQBuds Boost, to act as a low-cost alternative to hearing aids. The Boost headphones are programmable to enable personalized hearing experiences similar to those available when getting prescription earbuds from an audiologist. Justin Miller, a representative from Nuheara, says “We became the first company in the world to develop a product that effectively fits the audiologist in a box. It conducts a complete hearing test on you,” and the headphones can then function as personalized hearing aids. This will mark some of the first over the counter hearing aids in the US, following the move by President Trump last October to sign the Over the Counter Hearing Aid act into law. These devices already represent significant cost savings from traditional hearing aids, and future competitors will likely improve quality and make even more affordable products available to consumers. [Source: Loz Blain, New Atlas]