State Rep. Samara Heavrin, R-Leitchfield, has presented a plan that would require healthcare plans to expand coverage for hearing aids and related services, including cochlear implants.
Heavrin presented the plan to the Interim Joint Committee on Banking and Insurance.
“The bill would increase the minimum coverage amount and lift cost-sharing burdens for families,” Heavrin’s office said.
She plans to file the measure when the General Assembly convenes for the 2026 Regular Session in January 2026.
“This legislation is especially meaningful because a constituent whose family has lived through the reality of raising a child with hearing loss brought this issue to my attention,” Heavrin said. “I was proud to take on this bill and carry it forward on behalf of the countless families who are struggling with the enormous financial barrier of pediatric hearing loss.”
If left untreated, children born with hearing loss will experience significant impacts to their language development, future academic success, and emotional and social environment.
Many Kentucky families struggle to afford this treatment because the out-of-pocket cost of hearing aids alone translates to about $30,000 from the time a child is born until they are 18-years-old.
Recognizing this costly burden on families, in 2002 the General Assembly passed legislation requiring fully funded commercial insurance plans to cover a portion of hearing aid costs for children. Under current law, families using commercial insurance are still paying 100 percent out of pocket for the cost of hearing aids due to high-deductible insurance plans, Heavrin’s office said.
“For children, early access to hearing aids is not just an option, it is essential for their growth and development,” Heavrin said. “By expanding coverage for this population, we are giving children who are hard of hearing the ability to receive the treatment they need and gain the necessary foundational skills they need for language, learning and connection. This bill will not only help kids in the commonwealth today, but will continue to provide savings in costs tied to untreated hearing loss.”
The proposed measure would require health plans to cover one hearing aid per hard-of-hearing ear and increase the minimum coverage amount for hearing aids to $2,500 per year, every three years. The bill would also provide for a periodic review and update of the minimum amount to maintain adequate coverage for hearing aids over time and eliminate cost-sharing for families.
“In addition to saving on the cost of hearing aids, this bill would provide downstream savings in expenses outside of insurance payments such as special education costs, disability claims, and unemployment claims directly related to untreated pediatric hearing loss,” according to Heavrin’s office.
For more information and to keep track of the legislature during the interim, please visit legislature.ky.gov.
(Photo: State Rep. Samara Heavrin, courtesy of the Legislative Research Commission)
By Ken Howlett, News Director
Contact Ken at ken@k105.com
