In October, Fort Worth-based Lucid Hearing began selling hearing aids at more than 450 Sam’s Club locations nationwide after the FDA opened up the market to over-the-counter sales. Today it announced a revolutionary way to see—or rather, hear—if you have the need for their devices.
Lucid has partnered with Independa—a remote engagement and care platform based in San Diego—to launch what it describes as “the world’s first smart TV-based hearing assessments.”
Works on all 2021 or newer LG Smart TVs
The technology is available on all 2021 or newer LG Smart TVs, the companies said. Leveraging the Independa Health Hub, the tech enables users to assess their hearing for free, right in their own homes.
Lucid already offers free online and in-store tests for people over the age of 19 through its more than 500 hearing centers, most of which are located inside Sam’s Club locations. But the new tech has the potential of opening up a wider customer base by making it even easier to assess one’s hearing. Lucid says the new, first-of-a-kind offering “seeks to improve accessibility and promote better hearing health for all Americans.”
“By partnering with Independa, we’re providing perhaps the most convenient and easy-to-use option for hearing assessments,” Lucid Hearing EVP of research and development Bennett Griffin said in a statement. “This will greatly benefit millions of Americans who suspect they have hearing loss but have hesitated to seek testing and treatment. This offering underscores Lucid Hearing’s commitment to partnerships like this that will significantly expand hearing health accessibility and improve outcomes.”
Institute: Around 28 million Americans could benefit from hearing aids
Around 28 million Americans could benefit from using hearing aids, according to the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders. By expanding its hearing assessments to owners of newer LG Smart TVs in their own homes, Lucid says it aims to help more Americans “determine if they are among those who need hearing assistance.”
“We’re proud to partner with Lucid Hearing in bringing this innovative hearing solution to living rooms across the country,” Kian Saneii, CEO of Independa, said in the statement. “Hearing loss affects millions across this nation, and now we’re offering the ability to assess hearing from your TV. This is a world first and a game-changer for delivering improved accessibility and solutions to those who need treatment, whether their loss is mild to moderate or even severe.”
Assessment results with product recommendations, whether you have hearing loss or not
Lucid Hearing over-the-counter hearing aids. [Photo: Lucid Hearing]
The companies say their LG Smart TV assessment will offer users “a personalized experience, providing tailored results and guiding users to the type of assistance they need.” And Lucid will offer solutions no matter what the results of the assessment are—including products that protect the hearing of those who currently have no hearing loss. (Those users will be guided to consider hearing protection through etymotic.com, a division of Lucid Hearing.)
For people whose assessment results reveal mild to moderate hearing loss, Lucid will recommend over-the-counter hearing aids, which can be delivered directly to homes “without a trip to an audiologist.”
For those with an indication of a severe hearing loss, the assessment platform will recommend a free hearing test with an audiologist at the nearest Lucid Hearing Center in a Sam’s Club location.
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Today is the first day that over-the-counter hearing aids can be sold without a prescription. It’s a moment that Fort Worth-based Lucid Hearing has been eyeing for years.
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