Does Medicare Cover Hearing Aids?
Original Medicare doesn’t cover hearing aids or exams for fitting hearing aids, according to medicare.gov and 42 CFR 411.15(d). Medicare Part B covers diagnostic hearing and balance exams if a doctor or other health care provider orders them to find out if you need medical treatment, and after the Part B deductible ($283 in 2026) you pay 20% of the Medicare-approved amount.
Maintained by Archie Chang · Reviewed November 2, 2026 · Methodology & sources
Hearing aids and fitting exams
Medicare.gov’s hearing aids page says:
“Medicare doesn’t cover hearing aids or exams for fitting hearing aids”
“You pay all costs for non-covered services, including hearing aids and exams.”
The rule in the Code of Federal Regulations excludes the same things:
“(d) Hearing aids or examinations for the purpose of prescribing, fitting, or changing hearing aids.”
The rule also says the hearing aid exclusion does not apply to certain devices:
“(2) Devices not subject to the hearing aid exclusion. Paragraph (d)(1) of this section shall not apply to the following devices that produce the perception of sound by replacing the function of the middle ear, cochlea, or auditory nerve:
(i) Osseointegrated implants in the skull bone that provide mechanical energy to the cochlea via a mechanical transducer, or
(ii) Cochlear implants and auditory brainstem implants that replace the function of cochlear structures or auditory nerve and provide electrical energy to auditory nerve fibers and other neural tissue via implanted electrode arrays.”
Diagnostic hearing and balance exams
Medicare.gov’s hearing and balance exams page says:
“Part B covers diagnostic hearing and balance (fall risk) exams if your doctor or other health care provider orders them to find out if you need medical treatment.
Original Medicare doesn’t cover hearing aids or exams for fitting hearing aids.”
The same page gives the rule for seeing an audiologist without an order, and how often:
“You can visit an audiologist once every 12 months without an order from your health care provider, but only for:
Non-acute hearing conditions (like hearing loss that happens over many years)
Diagnostic services related to hearing loss treated with surgically implanted hearing devices”
What you pay for covered exams
“After you meet the Part B deductible, you pay 20% of the Medicare-approved amount.
In a hospital outpatient setting, you also pay the hospital a copayment.”
The CMS 2026 fact sheet gives the Part B deductible for 2026:
“The annual deductible for all Medicare Part B beneficiaries will be $283 in 2026 […]”
The Part B premium and deductible for earlier years are on the Part B premium and deductible history.
Medicare Advantage and Medigap
“Some Medicare Advantage Plans (Part C) offer extra benefits that Original Medicare doesn’t cover - like vision, hearing, or dental. Contact the plan for more information.”
How and when people can change coverage is on Medicare open enrollment. The Medicare & You handbook says about Medigap policies:
“Generally, Medigap doesn’t cover long-term care (like care in a nursing home), vision or dental services, hearing aids, eyeglasses, or private-duty nursing.”
Dental services have their own rule and listed exceptions; see does Medicare cover dental.
Frequently asked questions
Does Medicare cover hearing aids?
No. Medicare.gov says Medicare doesn’t cover hearing aids or exams for fitting hearing aids, and that you pay all costs for non-covered services, including hearing aids and exams. 42 CFR 411.15(d) excludes “Hearing aids or examinations for the purpose of prescribing, fitting, or changing hearing aids.”
Does Medicare cover hearing tests?
Medicare.gov says Part B covers diagnostic hearing and balance (fall risk) exams if your doctor or other health care provider orders them to find out if you need medical treatment. Exams for fitting hearing aids are not covered.
Can you see an audiologist without an order from a doctor?
Medicare.gov says you can visit an audiologist once every 12 months without an order from your health care provider, but only for non-acute hearing conditions (like hearing loss that happens over many years) and for diagnostic services related to hearing loss treated with surgically implanted hearing devices.
What do you pay for a covered hearing or balance exam?
Medicare.gov says that after you meet the Part B deductible you pay 20% of the Medicare-approved amount, and in a hospital outpatient setting you also pay the hospital a copayment. The CMS 2026 fact sheet gives the 2026 Part B deductible as $283.
Are cochlear implants treated as hearing aids under Medicare’s rule?
42 CFR 411.15(d)(2) says the hearing aid exclusion does not apply to devices that produce the perception of sound by replacing the function of the middle ear, cochlea, or auditory nerve, and it names osseointegrated implants in the skull bone, cochlear implants and auditory brainstem implants.
Do Medicare Advantage Plans cover hearing aids?
Medicare.gov says some Medicare Advantage Plans (Part C) offer extra benefits that Original Medicare doesn’t cover, like vision, hearing, or dental, and to contact the plan for more information.
Related Medicare pages
- Medicare Part A: What It Covers and What It Costs in 2026
- Does Medicare Cover Dental Care?
- Does Medicare Cover Cataract Surgery?
- Does Medicare Pay for Assisted Living?
- Medicare vs Medicaid
- Medicare Savings Programs
- Medicare open enrollment
- Medicare Part B premium and deductible history
- Medicare Part D
- Medicare late enrollment penalty calculator
- IRMAA brackets
Sources
All retrieved November 2, 2026. Quotes are verbatim; “[…]” marks every omission.
- Medicare.gov: Dental services
- Medicare.gov: Hearing aids
- Medicare.gov: Hearing & balance exams
- Medicare.gov: Cataract surgery
- Medicare.gov: Eyeglasses & contact lenses
- Medicare.gov: Long-term care
- Medicare.gov: Skilled nursing facility (SNF) care
- Medicare.gov: Hospice care
- Medicare.gov: Inpatient hospital care
- Medicare.gov: What Part A covers
- Medicare.gov: Medicare costs
- CMS: 2026 Medicare Parts A & B Premiums and Deductibles (fact sheet, Nov. 14, 2025)
- 42 CFR 411.15 (eCFR)
- Medicare & You 2027 handbook (medicare.gov)