Sides Getting Word Out on Kids' Hearing-Aid Bill
The Denver Post
Feb. 6, 2008
The Cuckow children — Madison, 9, Mc Kinna, 3, and Ben, 1— are patients at Children's Hospital Colorado who require hearing aids.
A bill working its way through the Colorado legislature sponsored by Sen. Ken Kester, R-Las Animas, would require Colorado insurers to cover hearing aids for children. Presently, Colorado insurers consider hearing aids cosmetic and not medically necessary.
Denver Post reporter Katy Human interviewed Marcia Taber, manager of Deaf and Hard of Hearing Services at Children's Hospital Colorado.
"Without hearing, verbalizations and vocalizations are significantly delayed," she said.
She said "it doesn't make sense" for insurance companies to increase rates in response to such a bill.
"In the long run, early hearing correction prevents many types of later problems, from psychological to social, academic and language," Taber said.
