On March 6, U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Massachusetts) tweeted about a bipartisan bill sponsored by herself and Sen. Check Grassey (R-Iowa) to allow some hearing aids to be sold over the counter. The senators also ran an editorial on the topic in JAMA.

A Distinguished Professor of Speech and Hearing Sciences at Indiana University, Larry Humes is the author of a study published March 2 in the American Journal of Audiology that provides support for providing access to hearing aids over the counter.

The study reports a clinical trial of 154 adults ages 55- to 79- with mild to moderate hearing loss who were given access to either over-the-counter hearing or prescription hearing aids. It found little difference in clinical outcomes between these two groups. Lack of access and cost -- estimated at $2,000 per ear -- are common reasons many people do not use hearing aids, which are only used by 1 in 6 adults who could benefit from the technology.

For more information about the study, visit

To contact Dr. Humes, email [email protected].