The high cost of untreated hearing loss

Did you know that untreated hearing loss can result in higher healthcare costs over time? There are now many studies that prove it “pays” to have hearing loss treated — not only from a physical standpoint, but from a financial standpoint too!

Hearing loss has become a hot topic in the field of science and healthcare. There are well-established relationships between hearing loss and other health issues: heart disease, stroke, diabetes, falls and dementia to name a few. Now there is a proven relationship between untreated hearing loss and higher healthcare costs.

According to a new study led by researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, “older adults with untreated hearing loss have substantially higher total health care costs compared to those who don't have hearing loss — an average of 46 percent, totaling $22,434 per person over a decade.”

Another study, done by the University of South Carolina, found that those with diagnosed hearing loss had 33 percent higher health care costs than those without hearing loss.

Why untreated hearing loss can lead to higher healthcare costs

Researchers believe that there could be several reasons for these higher healthcare costs. The main reason is that, because those with hearing loss have trouble communicating, they are waiting longer to seek medical treatment. The longer a person waits to seek medical treatment, the more difficult it is to treat an illness.

Another reason might be that the hearing impaired person didn’t hear or interpret the treatment instructions correctly. This could delay the healing process and incur even more healthcare costs.

These studies highlight just one of the reasons it is important to treat hearing loss in a timely manner. Don’t let your fear of the unknown keep you from seeking help for suspected hearing loss. As you can see, the stakes are much higher than you might have realized.

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