Question about upgrades (I'm a candidate for a CI!)

[Guest guest]

Hi everyone,

Well, it's me again. :-) I had my CI evaluation on Wednesday and was

approved...yay! Now we are waiting for insurance pre-approval, and I need

to decide which company to go with. What a hard decision!

They are recommending bilateral CI's since I have no hearing in either

ear. I do need to go in to talk to the doctor about what this means

surgery-wise (recovery, etc.) Has anyone here had both ears implanted at

the same time, and was the recovery really difficult?

Right now I'm trying to research the upgrade aspect of both companies that

are available to me (Advanced Bionics and Cochlear). I'd be curious to

hear any experiences you all have had with upgrading your CI. My concern

is the cost, really -- if my insurance company doesn't pay for it, I really

cannot afford to spend $8,000 per ear to upgrade the processor.

AB has a FAQ on their most recent processor and the upgrade for it, and

they state that they don't take insurance assignment for the upgrade. In

other words, you have to pay for it yourself, and then submit a claim to

your insurance company and hope they'll pay for it (or pay for some of

it). That makes me really nervous! I haven't had a chance to research

Cochlear's policy on upgrades yet but that's my job for today.

Anyway, I just thought the best source of information would be people who

have gone through upgrades from both companies. Do you find that insurance

covers it without a fight? (I have Aetna Advantage PPO, with the highest

deductible there is since I pay for the insurance myself...LOL!) Do you

just skip the upgrades because they are too prohibitively expensive? I

know that eventually upgrading is necessary because older models become

obsolete and you can no longer get repair service on them.

But really, this is making me re-think the bilateral thing. I feel like

bilateral implants will give me the best quality of life since I can't use

a hearing aid on the unimplanted side...but financially, I'm not sure I can

afford the upkeep and upgrades of two processors.

Decisions, decisions! :-)

~Wendi in Illinois

http://suddensilence.wordpress.com/

[Guest guest]

Hi ,

Congratulations on being approved. The advantage of doing bilaterals

at the same time is that you only pay for the anesthesia, operating room,

and those expenses once. And you have one recovery.

If you're getting implanted NOW, you'll have the state of the art

equipment, and won't have to worry about upgrades at this point. I think

most implants come with a 3 year warranty on external devices. I was

implanted almost 12 years ago, started with a body worn processor, and

upgraded to a behind the ear when that was available. My insurance paid

for 2 processors. Then when the 3G came out, I upgraded to that. And

when the Freedom came out I upgraded to that. Had I been implanted with

AB 12 years ago, I would not have been able to upgrade, like I have with

Cochlear.

Read the information on the website. www..com It talks

about what to look for, etc.

Are you aware that the FDA has fined AB 2.2 million dollars for using

parts from an old supplier who made a lot of their implants that failed.

And a class action suit is now underway for anyone who had to have their

AB device removed due to implant failure. It's going to cost a lot of

money to defend itself, and to pay the FDA fine, which could mean lay

offs in the support staff at AB. Just something to consider.

If you have any questions about the Nucleus brand, I know a lot about

them.

Good luck, whatever your decision.

[Guest guest]

I need to correct what has stated as fact when it is not.

First of all, you can use upgrades from AB whenever they come out. A

good example would be when Harmony was introduced last year. Anyone

with a body worn processor could use the new program after the

audiologist did the mapping. Those with behind the ear would need to

purchase the external processor and as anyone can tell you who has

Harmony.....it is amazing! Well worth the upgrade. I have two CI's

with Harmony and what a miracle they are for me.

The fine is referring to is OLD NEWS - 2003. AB had a problem

with one of their vendors. When it was discovered AB immediately

alerted anyone who received it with a letter telling them of the

situation. AB has always been upfront regarding this and has

resolved the issue in a reputable way. The very few who needed to

have their implant removed and a new one put in have been

understanding of the situation. The money hungry lawyers are the

ones who have gotten involved and they are the ones searching for

someone who is unhappy about the situation. I even got an inquiry

and I don't have the Vendor B implant. The fine is being settled

with the FDA and fines are part of the process the FDA uses.

The fine has NO IMPACT on the ability of AB to operate business as

usual. To imply they would have layoffs is stricly brand/company

bashing in the worse way.

Bottom line.....whatever brand you have has probably changed your

life tremendously. That is the goal everyone wants. I realize that

the largest percentage of people on this forum are Cochlear

users...that is great. Those who use Advanced Bionics can join

Hearing Journey.

>

> Hi ,

> Congratulations on being approved. The advantage of doing

bilaterals

> at the same time is that you only pay for the anesthesia, operating

room,

> and those expenses once. And you have one recovery.

> If you're getting implanted NOW, you'll have the state of the

art

> equipment, and won't have to worry about upgrades at this point. I

think

> most implants come with a 3 year warranty on external devices. I

was

> implanted almost 12 years ago, started with a body worn processor,

and

> upgraded to a behind the ear when that was available. My insurance

paid

> for 2 processors. Then when the 3G came out, I upgraded to that.

And

> when the Freedom came out I upgraded to that. Had I been implanted

with

> AB 12 years ago, I would not have been able to upgrade, like I have

with

> Cochlear.

> Read the information on the website. www..com It

talks

> about what to look for, etc.

> Are you aware that the FDA has fined AB 2.2 million dollars for

using

> parts from an old supplier who made a lot of their implants that

failed.

> And a class action suit is now underway for anyone who had to have

their

> AB device removed due to implant failure. It's going to cost a lot

of

> money to defend itself, and to pay the FDA fine, which could mean

lay

> offs in the support staff at AB. Just something to consider.

> If you have any questions about the Nucleus brand, I know a lot

about

> them.

> Good luck, whatever your decision.

>

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

Hi all, I just wanted to weigh in on the advice given below: I have

an AB Platinum series BTE, having been implanted in 2000. the

suggestion to try hearing journey was worthless. There is no

discussion ongoing about upgrades, problems, etc. It is nothing but

a marketing venue for Advanced Bionics (and sponsored by them) to get

new customers. Little to nothing for or by existing users.

any other (useful) suggestions that offer a fair commentary for

Advanced Bionics users? I will check them all out and report back of

how they rate.

> >

> > Hi ,

> > Congratulations on being approved. The advantage of doing

> bilaterals

> > at the same time is that you only pay for the anesthesia,

operating

> room,

> > and those expenses once. And you have one recovery.

> > If you're getting implanted NOW, you'll have the state of the

> art

> > equipment, and won't have to worry about upgrades at this point.

I

> think

> > most implants come with a 3 year warranty on external devices.

I

> was

> > implanted almost 12 years ago, started with a body worn

processor,

> and

> > upgraded to a behind the ear when that was available. My

insurance

> paid

> > for 2 processors. Then when the 3G came out, I upgraded to

that.

> And

> > when the Freedom came out I upgraded to that. Had I been

implanted

> with

> > AB 12 years ago, I would not have been able to upgrade, like I

have

> with

> > Cochlear.

> > Read the information on the website. www..com

It

> talks

> > about what to look for, etc.

> > Are you aware that the FDA has fined AB 2.2 million dollars

for

> using

> > parts from an old supplier who made a lot of their implants that

> failed.

> > And a class action suit is now underway for anyone who had to

have

> their

> > AB device removed due to implant failure. It's going to cost a

lot

> of

> > money to defend itself, and to pay the FDA fine, which could mean

> lay

> > offs in the support staff at AB. Just something to consider.

> > If you have any questions about the Nucleus brand, I know a

lot

> about

> > them.

> > Good luck, whatever your decision.

> >

> >

> >

> >

[Guest guest]

,

The fine that the FDA is seeking is not old news, its merely government

doing what it does best, plod along slowly while it carries out its tasks.

Yes it is due to a serious problem back in 2003 that should not have been

allowed to happen. AB was upfront because it was serious, what else would

AB do. AB had to deal with this one waa or another and why shouldnt it step

up to the plate and act.

" The very few who needed to have their implant removed and a new one put

in have been understanding of the situation. "

Really? I find that hard to believe. Any surgery carries risks and to

go thru another one due to a defective part in the internal implant is

inexcusable. Its bad enough to wonder what the outcome of a CI surgery will

be only to go thru it yet again and who can predict that outcome?

If anything, one could hope this latest development will ensure that AB

becomes more vigilant in its business.

*---* *---* *---* *---* *---*

Brown's Law: If the shoe fits, it's ugly.

& Dreamer Doll ke7nwn

Newport, Oregon

N24C 8/2000 Hookup

rclark0276@...

http://webpages.charter.net/dog_guide/

[Guest guest]

To better understand Advanced Bionics, look up the achievement of its

founder, Alfred Mann/.

Alfred Tsang

**********************************

On May 12, 2008, at 12:28 PM, wrote:

> ,

> The fine that the FDA is seeking is not old news, its merely

> government

> doing what it does best, plod along slowly while it carries out its

> tasks.

> Yes it is due to a serious problem back in 2003 that should not have

> been

> allowed to happen. AB was upfront because it was serious, what else

> would

> AB do. AB had to deal with this one waa or another and why shouldnt

> it step

> up to the plate and act.

>

> " The very few who needed to have their implant removed and a new one

> put

> in have been understanding of the situation. "

>

> Really? I find that hard to believe. Any surgery carries risks and to

> go thru another one due to a defective part in the internal implant is

> inexcusable. Its bad enough to wonder what the outcome of a CI

> surgery will

> be only to go thru it yet again and who can predict that outcome?

>

> If anything, one could hope this latest development will ensure that

> AB

> becomes more vigilant in its business.

>

> *---* *---* *---* *---* *---*

> Brown's Law: If the shoe fits, it's ugly.

> & Dreamer Doll ke7nwn

> Newport, Oregon

> N24C 8/2000 Hookup

> rclark0276@...

> http://webpages.charter.net/dog_guide/

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

Hi,

I have a Cochlear brand CI and have been extremely pleased with mine but

that is not why I'm commenting. I wanted to comment about the hearing

Journey forum. I regularly use " the Listening Room " on the hearing journey

site. It has wonderful and VERY creative/inexpensive/fun ideas to use with

my son who is hard of hearing. Actually, I think it's great for both

hearing and HOH children. I'm anxiously waiting for the toddler section to

open up in the fall so I can try some things with my hearing daughter. They

also have a Teen/Adult section opening up this summer which may be of some

use for myself. Anyway, just wanted to add my 2 cents in about the hearing

journey website. I've not really looked through any of the other sections

of it.

From: [mailto: ] On Behalf Of

telluridemountaineer

Sent: Monday, May 12, 2008 11:26 AM

Subject: Re:Question about upgrades (I'm a candidate for a CI!)

Hi all, I just wanted to weigh in on the advice given below: I have

an AB Platinum series BTE, having been implanted in 2000. the

suggestion to try hearing journey was worthless. There is no

discussion ongoing about upgrades, problems, etc. It is nothing but

a marketing venue for Advanced Bionics (and sponsored by them) to get

new customers. Little to nothing for or by existing users.

any other (useful) suggestions that offer a fair commentary for

Advanced Bionics users? I will check them all out and report back of

how they rate.

> >

> > Hi ,

> > Congratulations on being approved. The advantage of doing

> bilaterals

> > at the same time is that you only pay for the anesthesia,

operating

> room,

> > and those expenses once. And you have one recovery.

> > If you're getting implanted NOW, you'll have the state of the

> art

> > equipment, and won't have to worry about upgrades at this point.

I

> think

> > most implants come with a 3 year warranty on external devices.

I

> was

> > implanted almost 12 years ago, started with a body worn

processor,

> and

> > upgraded to a behind the ear when that was available. My

insurance

> paid

> > for 2 processors. Then when the 3G came out, I upgraded to

that.

> And

> > when the Freedom came out I upgraded to that. Had I been

implanted

> with

> > AB 12 years ago, I would not have been able to upgrade, like I

have

> with

> > Cochlear.

> > Read the information on the website. www..com

It

> talks

> > about what to look for, etc.

> > Are you aware that the FDA has fined AB 2.2 million dollars

for

> using

> > parts from an old supplier who made a lot of their implants that

> failed.

> > And a class action suit is now underway for anyone who had to

have

> their

> > AB device removed due to implant failure. It's going to cost a

lot

> of

> > money to defend itself, and to pay the FDA fine, which could mean

> lay

> > offs in the support staff at AB. Just something to consider.

> > If you have any questions about the Nucleus brand, I know a

lot

> about

> > them.

> > Good luck, whatever your decision.

> >

> >

> >

> >

[Guest guest]

,

Can you share the website address. I have not heard of this and

wondering if you are referring to AB's listening room.

~ Kitty S. ~

Cochlear Awareness Network, Vounteer Advocate

Chicago, IL

IMPLANTED: 09.07.06 (Freedom CA-R)

ACTIVATED: 09.22.06 (Nice B-day gift!)

BLOG: https://CIJourney4Kitty.blogspot.com

EMAIL: Meow98mix@...

THE NUKED CAFE: Nuked_Cafe-subscribe

[Guest guest]

I apologize, I meant to include it in the original msg. It is provided by

Advanced Bionics and the website is Hearingjourney.com. The full link is

below.

http://www.hearingjourney.com/listening_room/index.cfm?langid=1

Enjoy!

From: [mailto: ] On Behalf Of

Kitty S.

Sent: Tuesday, May 13, 2008 7:32 AM

Subject: Re: Re:Question about upgrades (I'm a candidate for a CI!)

,

Can you share the website address. I have not heard of this and

wondering if you are referring to AB's listening room.

~ Kitty S. ~

Cochlear Awareness Network, Vounteer Advocate

Chicago, IL

IMPLANTED: 09.07.06 (Freedom CA-R)

ACTIVATED: 09.22.06 (Nice B-day gift!)

BLOG: https://CIJourney4Kitty.blogspot.com

EMAIL: Meow98mix@... <mailto:Meow98mix%40gmail.com>

THE NUKED CAFE: Nuked_Cafe-subscribe

<mailto:Nuked_Cafe-subscribe%40>