Does Medicare Pay for Hearing Aids? What Is and Isn’t Covered

Does Medicare pay for hearing aids? Under Original Medicare (Part A and Part B), no. Medicare.gov says it plainly: Medicare doesn’t cover hearing aids or exams for fitting them. You pay all costs for non-covered services. What Part B does cover is a diagnostic hearing and balance exam when a doctor or other provider orders it. Many Medicare Advantage plans add a hearing benefit as an extra. There are other routes too: over-the-counter hearing aids, Medi-Cal, VA care and some employer or retiree plans.

This article goes deeper than our overview of dental, vision and hearing: the 2026 rules, how a Medicare Advantage hearing benefit works, what to ask before you count on one, and where else to look.

Medicare hearing aid coverage at a glance

Coverage	Hearing aids	Hearing exams	Notes
Original Medicare (Part A and Part B)	Not covered. You pay the full cost.	Diagnostic hearing and balance exams are covered under Part B when a provider orders them. Exams to fit hearing aids are not.	Some surgically implanted devices, such as cochlear implants, may be covered as prosthetic devices.
Medicare Advantage (Part C)	Many plans include a hearing benefit. What it pays varies by plan.	Often includes routine hearing exams.	Networks, limits and prior authorization vary. Read the plan’s Evidence of Coverage.
Medigap (Medicare Supplement)	Not covered.	Helps with your share of the Part B exams Original Medicare covers.	Medigap pays only toward services Original Medicare covers.
Over-the-counter hearing aids	You pay the store price.	No exam, prescription or fitting needed.	For adults 18 and older with perceived mild to moderate hearing loss (FDA).

Why doesn’t Original Medicare cover hearing aids?

Federal Medicare law excludes hearing aids and the exams to fit them, which is why the answer has stayed the same for years.

Congress has looked at changing it. The Medicare Hearing Aid Coverage Act of 2025 (H.R. 500) was introduced in January 2025. As of mid-2026 it had not moved past committee. Rules can change, so check Medicare.gov before you rely on an older article.

What does Part B pay for? Hearing and balance exams

Part B covers diagnostic hearing and balance (fall risk) exams if your doctor or other health care provider orders them. The purpose is to find out whether you need medical treatment, not to fit a hearing aid.

You can also see an audiologist once every 12 months without an order, but only for:

• Non-acute hearing conditions, such as hearing loss that has developed over many years
• Diagnostic services related to hearing loss treated with surgically implanted hearing devices

What you pay: after the Part B deductible ($283 in 2026, per CMS), you pay 20% coinsurance for the exam. In a hospital outpatient setting, you also pay the hospital a copayment.

Cochlear implants are different from hearing aids. Medicare.gov lists “some surgically implanted prosthetic devices, including cochlear implants” among the prosthetic devices Part B covers when a doctor orders them. The supplier must participate in Medicare, and you pay 20% coinsurance after the Part B deductible.

Does Medicare pay for hearing aids under Medicare Advantage?

It can, depending on the plan. Medicare Advantage plans are offered by private companies that contract with Medicare. They must cover everything Original Medicare covers, and many add extras such as hearing. KFF reports that in 2026, 95% of people in individual Medicare Advantage plans are in plans that offer hearing exams and/or hearing aids. That share is the same as in 2025.

What that benefit looks like varies a great deal. Common shapes include:

• An allowance toward hearing aids, once a year or once every few years
• A copay per hearing aid that depends on the technology level
• A set provider or vendor you must use to get the benefit
• Prior authorization (the plan’s OK in advance) for exams or aids. KFF notes that most people are in plans that require it for hearing exams.
• Fittings, follow-up visits, batteries and repairs that may or may not be included

Six questions to ask about a plan’s hearing benefit

1. Does the benefit cover hearing aids, hearing exams, or both?
2. How does the plan pay: an allowance, a fixed copay by technology level, or a percentage? What is left for me to pay?
3. How often can I get new hearing aids, and when does that clock reset?
4. Do I have to use a certain hearing provider, vendor or network, and is there one near me?
5. Is prior authorization or a referral needed, and are fittings, follow-ups, batteries and repairs included?
6. Where is this written in the Evidence of Coverage, and could it change next year?

A hearing benefit is an extra. Check the plan’s doctors, hospitals, drug list and network rules first. Our articles on Medicare Advantage HMO vs PPO and Medicare Advantage vs Medigap in California walk through those choices.

Over-the-counter vs prescription hearing aids: what’s the difference?

Since October 17, 2022, the FDA has allowed over-the-counter (OTC) hearing aids. They are for adults 18 and older who believe they have mild to moderate hearing loss. You can buy them in a store or online without a medical exam, a prescription or a fitting. The FDA says they are not for severe or profound hearing loss.

Prescription hearing aids cover any degree of hearing loss, including severe, and any age. They require a prescription, and in some states must be bought from a licensed seller.

The FDA also lists signs to see a doctor about before buying an OTC device. They include a sudden change in hearing in the past six months, ear pain, fluid draining from the ear, dizziness, and hearing loss or ringing in only one ear. Ask your doctor what is right for you.

Neither Original Medicare nor Medigap pays for OTC or prescription hearing aids. If you have a Medicare Advantage plan, ask whether its hearing benefit applies to an OTC purchase; some plans limit the benefit to certain providers.

Other places hearing aid coverage can come from

• Medi-Cal. Medi-Cal lists hearing exams and hearing aids among its covered benefits for eligible members. Limits may apply, so ask your Medi-Cal plan or county office what is covered. If you have both Medicare and Medi-Cal, see our article on Medi-Medi Plans.
• VA health care. VA provides hearing aids to veterans who are enrolled in VA health care and eligible for VA care. VA audiology visits can be scheduled without a referral. Read how Medicare and VA benefits work together.
• Employer or retiree plans. Some group plans include a hearing benefit. Ask the benefits office what it pays and how it works with Medicare.

What to do during Annual Enrollment if hearing coverage matters

The Annual Enrollment Period runs October 15 – December 7 every year, and changes start January 1. If hearing is one of your reasons for choosing a plan:

1. Read the Annual Notice of Change your current plan sends by September 30. Look for changes to the hearing benefit, its provider and its limits.
2. Compare each plan’s hearing benefit using the six questions above, and write the answers down side by side.
3. Check your doctors, hospitals and prescriptions before the extras. A hearing benefit does not help if your cardiologist is out of network.
4. If you have Original Medicare and a Medigap policy, remember that buying Medigap again later may mean medical questions. Think that through before you leave it for a hearing benefit.
5. If you join a Medicare Advantage plan and change your mind, the Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment Period (January 1 – March 31) allows one change.

Our Annual Enrollment 2027 guide has the full calendar. For one-on-one counseling, HICAP, California’s Health Insurance Counseling & Advocacy Program, is at 1-800-434-0222. You can also call 1-800-MEDICARE (TTY 1-877-486-2048).

Frequently asked questions

Are hearing aids covered by Medicare if my doctor says I need them?

Not under Original Medicare. A doctor’s order makes a diagnostic hearing exam a covered Part B service, but it does not make the hearing aid itself covered. The exclusion is in federal law. A Medicare Advantage plan with a hearing benefit may help, within that plan’s limits.

Does Medicare cover hearing aids if I have Medi-Cal too?

Medicare still does not, but Medi-Cal lists hearing exams and hearing aids among its covered benefits for eligible members, with limits. If you have both, your Medi-Cal plan or a Medi-Medi Plan is the place to ask. Our Medi-Medi Plans article explains how the two programs work together.

Does Medigap cover hearing aids?

No. Medicare.gov says Medigap plans generally don’t cover long-term care, vision or dental care, hearing aids, glasses or private-duty nursing. Medigap helps pay your share of services Original Medicare covers, such as the 20% coinsurance for a diagnostic hearing exam.

How do Medicare Advantage hearing aids benefits work when I travel or move?

Most hearing benefits run through a network or a vendor. They may not work outside the plan’s service area. If you move out of the area, the plan can disenroll you, and you get a Special Enrollment Period to pick new coverage. Ask the plan how its hearing benefit works away from home before you count on it.

Will Medicare cover hearing aids in the future?

Bills to add hearing aid coverage have been introduced in Congress several times, most recently H.R. 500 in January 2025. As of mid-2026, it had not advanced. If the law changes, Medicare.gov will say so; until then, the answer to “does Medicare pay for hearing aids?” stays no for Original Medicare.

Talk with a licensed Boomers agent

A licensed Boomers agent can go over the Medicare plans we represent in your area and check them against your doctors and prescriptions. We can also read the hearing benefit in each plan’s Evidence of Coverage with you and answer the six questions above. Our help is at no cost to you.

Find a licensed agent near you · See upcoming Medicare events

Or call 1-800-815-1943 (TTY 711), Monday – Friday, 9 AM – 5 PM Pacific.

Sources

• Hearing aids (Medicare.gov)
• Hearing and balance exams (Medicare.gov)
• Prosthetic devices (Medicare.gov)
• What Medigap covers (Medicare.gov)
• 2026 Medicare Parts A & B premiums and deductibles (CMS.gov)
• Medicare Advantage in 2026: premiums, out-of-pocket limits, supplemental benefits and prior authorization (KFF, June 5, 2026)
• OTC hearing aids: what you should know (FDA)
• Audiology services (U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs)
• Medi-Cal (California Department of Health Care Services)
• H.R. 500, Medicare Hearing Aid Coverage Act of 2025 (Congress.gov)