UnitedHealthcare Expands Cochlear Implant Coverage for Younger Patients

Advocacy win! In a significant step toward improving access to critical hearing services, UnitedHealthcare (UHC) has announced an expansion of its medical policy for cochlear implants (CIs) that will expand coverage to younger patients. This development follows connections developed through ASHA’s annual Payer Summit and direct engagement and feedback to UHC from ASHA member volunteers and staff.

UHC’s updated policy, effective September 1, 2024, now includes coverage for patients

1. Six months and older with bilateral sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL) and
2. Nine months and older with single-sided deafness (SSD) or asymmetric SNHL, when clinically appropriate.

The policy applies to both commercial and individual exchange plans. UHC’s previous policy covered patients with bilateral SNHL at nine months and older and those with SSD or asymmetric SNHL starting at five years and older. ASHA applauds UHC’s updated coverage policy, which supports greater access to a range of critical hearing health and early intervention options.

Questions?

For more information on the updated coverage policy, please refer to UHC's medical policy. Contact ASHA’s health care and education policy team at reimbursement@asha.org for questions.