Help My Son Hear

My 6-year needs replacement cochlear devices.

Hi!

This is a one-off post asking for help for my son. My son, James, was born deaf in both ears. He received cochlear implants at 9 months old. He now needs replacement devices because his N7s are unreliable, have been out of warranty for over a year, and are no longer supported by the maker, Cochlear America.

The audiologist has no spare parts, and Cochlear America is out of network with our insurance. We were encouraged to place an order for the new kits so Cochlear America can start the 2-month negotiations with our insurance. According to my conversations with our insurance company, if they cover the devices, we would still need to pay $7000.

I am looking for funding, grants, or help to get my son the replacement Cochlear devices he needs, but since those have been a dead end (I have a list of what we have done on the bottom of this post), I have started a GoFundMe. Can you help us?

What I ask is that you read the GoFundMe, consider giving, share the GoFundMe on your social media, and pray for us.

I don’t want to ever ask for help like this again, so we are looking for ways to put away money for the next time. When he first received the cochlear implants, the out-of-pocket and deductible on our insurance wasn’t huge. I had received an inheritance from my grandmother that we used to cover it. We are now living in a different state with different regulations and with different insurance. This amount caught us by surprise.

Here are some of the charities and grants we have researched and emailed so far:

• Wyoming Hands and Voices (WYCHAP) - only provides funds for hearing aids

• Sunshine Cottage - supports students in their program in San Antonio

• Listen to Me! Baker’s Institute - provides new implants for children under 5 years old ( James is 6 years old) for residents of California and Hawaii

• The school district - does not provide hearing aids or CIs

• The Hospital - not helpful

• One22 in Jackson (the community fund) - does not help with medical

• The Lion’s Club International - helping us search for funds

• EasterSeal - none in the area and can’t help

• Help America Hear (HAH) program - only provides hearing aids (not CIs) for those earning less than $36000 per year

• (Foundation for Sight and Sound) - emailed them, but they have the same requirements as HAH above.

• Sertoma - none near us

• American Cochlear Implant Alliance - educational, not a financial resource

• Americans for Better Hearing Foundation - for Illinois residents

• Better Hearing Institute - an association for hearing aid makers that promotes education

• Campaign for Better Hearing - pays for free hearing tests

• Hearing Loss Association of America - for older adults to get hearing aids

• Jacob’s Ride for Hearing (Cochlear) - help with cochlear implant surgery

• Miracle Ear Foundation - provides hearing aids for low-income individuals

• National Center for Hearing Assessment and Management - education and hearing aid loaners

• ASHA - an association for speech therapists, education

• The HIKE Fund (Kids)Travelers Protective Association of America - downloaded an application with them, but they only cover up to $1000 for low-income families. We are not considered low-income on the national scale, but more than half of our income goes to rent.

• Oracle Health Foundation (Kids) - the grant will only cover it if the insurance denies the claim. $17,000 maximum. Will wait to see what the insurance says and if we cannot get a kit from below.

• Alexander Graham Bell Association - they do not pay for cochlear implants

• Wyoming Institute for Disabilities - a college program with scholarships, not for medical equipment

• Uplift.org - for mental, emotional, or behavioral health, not CIs

• The National Hearing Aid Project - low-income hearing aids

• Cochlear Implant Awareness Foundation - I am currently emailing them about our situation. (They have upgrade kits for $800 each, if they have any available)