Know the Facts: Charging Medicaid Patients
It is critical that audiologists and hearing instrument specialists understand regulations for charging for and delivering services or items to patients with Medicaid coverage.
Category: Regulation
Regulation
Latest
Regulation
Latest
Eargo, DOJ Reach Settlement on Reimbursement Investigation
In line with the Company’s priority to regain insurance coverage of Eargo for government employees under the FEHB program, the Company is focused on enhancing its compliance and risk management processes with respect to its operations in the healthcare industry and hiring additional qualified personnel and specialized consulting resources before submitting any further claims.
Regulation
Latest
Sens. Grassley, Warren Support FDA Rule on OTC Hearing Aids
In a letter to US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Acting Commissioner Janet Woodcock, Sens. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) and Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) expressed their support for key provisions in the FDA’s proposed rule for regulating over-the-counter (OTC) hearing aids.
FDA Proposed Rules for OTC Hearing Aids Extend Beyond OTC
The 114-page rules document published today in the Federal Register covers most aspects related to OTC hearing aid manufacturing, electroacoustic requirements, packaging and labeling, returns, and conditions for sale. In an effort to promote more consistency in the regulations and enforcement of hearing aid manufacturing and distribution, the FDA is also proposing several important changes that could affect the industry and state-wide hearing aid dispensing.
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Starkey Issues Statement On FDA Proposed OTC Ruling
Starkey President and CEO Brandon Sawalich has issued a statement regarding the recent proposed ruling by the Federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA) outlining a new category of hearing aids that can be sold over the counter (OTC).
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FDA Issues Proposed OTC Hearing Aid Rules
To ensure patient safety, the proposed rule addresses maximum output limits and includes certain device performance and design requirements, such as distortion control limits, self-generated noise limits, latency limits, frequency bandwidth, as well as a requirement to limit the insertion depth of the device. The proposed rule also includes labeling requirements for OTC hearing aids. As hoped, the FDA also issued an updated draft guidance, “Regulatory Requirements for Hearing Aid Devices and Personal Sound Amplification Products (PSAPs).”
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Starkey Launches ‘Listen Carefully’ Initiative
Starkey announced the launch of Listen Carefully, an initiative aimed at “bridging the conversation between hearing healthcare providers and lawmakers in Washington, DC.”
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Brandon Sawalich Discusses Impact of Biden Executive Order on Morning Consult
An opinion article published on the data intelligence company Morning Consult’s website by Starkey President Brandon Sawalich discusses some “misconceptions about hearing aids” following President Biden’s recent executive order on competition.
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Brandon Sawalich Writes ‘Forbes’ Article on Leadership
In an article recently published on the “Forbes” website, Starkey CEO Brandon Sawalich discusses the three guiding principles he follows with regard to the hearing care industry and the company’s dedication to providing people with better hearing
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Starkey CEO Writes Letter to Biden Addressing ‘OTC Law’
On July 9, 2021, President Biden unveiled an executive order unveiling 72 initiatives that included, among other things, plans to allow hearing aids to be sold over the counter at pharmacies.
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Biden Executive Order Looks at Cost of Hearing Aids
According to “NPR,” the orders includes plans to allow hearing aids to be sold over the counter at pharmacies, much like Obama administration efforts that strived to make hearing aids less like pricy medical devices and as easy to purchase as reading glasses.
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‘ADA’ Requirements Still in Place During COVID-19
The US Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia announced on April 16 that it will be providing a Dear Colleague Letter reminding community partners that are involved in the COVID-19 pandemic response that the “Americans with Disabilities Act” applies to their services.
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Akouos Receives FDA Designations for AK-OTOF
Akouos, Inc announced that the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted both Orphan Drug Designation (ODD) and Rare Pediatric Disease Designation (RPDD) for AK-OTOF, a gene therapy intended for the treatment of otoferlin gene-mediated hearing loss.
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Bill Postponing Medicare Cuts Expected to Become Law
The action extends a moratorium preventing reductions in reimbursement for audiology and speech-language pathology services, which were scheduled for implementation on April 1, according to ASHA.
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3M Earplugs Litigation Trial Begins
The mass tort case against the Maplewood, Minnesota-based 3M from claimants alleging that its earplugs were “knowingly defective” and caused them to have hearing loss and tinnitus, will begin March 29, according to an article in the ‘Star Tribune.’
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USPSTF Statement on Hearing Care Screening Becomes Final
The final recommendation—unchanged from the September version—concludes that there is insufficient evidence to recommend screening by doctors for hearing loss in asymptomatic adults aged 50 or older.
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FDA Approves 3D-printed Hearing Device
An experimental 3D device used to treat hearing loss was recently approved by the FDA to treat an elderly man’s rare hearing loss, according to an article on the “Nextgov” website.
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Managing Managed Care
Managed care is substantially growing in depth and breadth every year. Telehealth, OTC, the current pandemic, and other factors significantly impact the modern hearing care office in tandem with managed care. Therefore, as we evaluate, select and participate in managed care, we must seek and select the opportunities which best meet the goals and needs of the modern hearing care office.
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