I wish my insurance paid for mine. Helly, they don't even cover the visit to an audiologist.
Not to shill, but I got a Clareza 8 (8 channels) from Zounds Hearing (
http://zoundshearing.com/customers/products/clareza/ ). It's a mini behind the ear device so no custom fitting except for tuning it to your issue frequencies.
I did a bit of research before buying it and got it mainly because of 4 features:
-Price. It was $1500 (2 years ago). Most others I saw started at $2000.
-It uses a remote control to adjust volume, treble and bass. (It also has 4 preset modes which is handy).
-It uses a rechargeable battery. Each charge lasts about 16 hours. I put in the charging station each night (along with the remote control) and I'm good to go the next morning. The company replaces the battery free every 6 months or so.
-It has an on/off switch. Others I've seen require you to pull the battery to turn it off.
Yeah, it'd be great if they were cheaper. People who can't afford them simply do without, which really sucks. Not to be dramatic as I only have moderate hearing loss in my left ear, but getting my hearing aid really made life better.