Maryland covers hearing aids unusually well: Medicaid has covered hearing aids, cochlear implants, and bone-anchored devices for adults (not just kids) since July 2018, and a state law effective January 1, 2025 requires certain fully insured private plans to cover at least $1,400 per hearing aid per ear every 36 months for adults 19 and older — matching the long-standing children's mandate. Since January 1, 2026, licensed hearing aid dispensers (not just audiologists) can fit covered aids for adults. The Maryland Technology Assistance Program even publishes a free Hearing Aid & Hearing Assistive Technology funding guide, and DORS can help pay for hearing aids when hearing loss affects your job.
By Lilly Seay · Updated July 2026
Since July 1, 2018, Maryland Medicaid covers hearing aids, cochlear implants, and auditory osseointegrated devices (BAHAs) for adults 21+. Clinical criteria: a unilateral hearing aid requires a pure tone average of 40 dB or greater (500-3000 Hz) in the better ear, audiologist recommendation/fitting, and physician medical clearance within 6 months for the initial aid; bilateral aids require additional criteria (statutory blindness, prior successful bilateral use, or documented hearing-related disability in educational/vocational/community settings with demonstrated bilateral benefit). Services are delivered through HealthChoice managed-care plans, whose medical-necessity policies apply. The clinical criteria document does not state a fixed statewide replacement interval — replacements are based on medical necessity, so confirm with your MCO.
Federal EPSDT law (42 U.S.C. § 1396d(r)(4)) requires every state — Maryland included — to cover hearing aids for Medicaid-enrolled children under 21 at no cost to the family. Under EPSDT, Maryland Medicaid covers bilateral or unilateral hearing aids for participants up to age 21 with hearing loss of 25 dB or greater, when recommended and fitted by an audiologist with initial physician medical clearance (exam within the past 6 months). Maryland's CHIP is the Maryland Children's Health Program (MCHP), covering kids up to 322% FPL; families apply through Maryland Health Connection and receive services via HealthChoice MCOs.
Children: insurers, nonprofit health service plans, and HMOs must cover hearing aids for minor children prescribed, fitted, and dispensed by a licensed audiologist; the benefit may be limited to $1,400 per hearing aid for each hearing-impaired ear every 36 months, with the option to buy up without penalty (§ 15-838). Adults: effective January 1, 2025 (HB 1339/SB 778, signed May 2024, codified at § 15-838.1), coverage of medically necessary hearing aids is required for adults 19 and older with the same optional $1,400 per hearing aid per ear every 36 months limit and buy-up right — but per the Maryland Insurance Administration it applies only to fully insured large group plans and a limited number of pre-2011 individual plans (ACA exchange individual/small group plans already include hearing aid coverage as an essential benefit without the $1,400 limit). HB 1355/SB 641 (2025, ch. 742, effective Jan 1, 2026) lets licensed hearing aid dispensers — not just audiologists — order, fit, and dispense covered adult aids. Self-funded ERISA plans, Medicare, Medicare Advantage/Supplement, Tricare, VA benefits, and Medicaid are exempt.
Statute: Md. Insurance Code § 15-838 (minors); § 15-838.1 (adults, 2024 HB 1339/SB 778, effective Jan 1, 2025; amended by 2025 HB 1355/SB 641, ch. 742, effective Jan 1, 2026)
Remember: state mandates only reach state-regulated ("fully insured") plans. Self-funded employer plans — covering about two-thirds of insured workers — are exempt under federal ERISA law. One question to HR settles which kind you have.
Maryland's insurance market is dominated by CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield, with five carriers selling 2026 individual plans on Maryland Health Connection and nine HealthChoice managed-care organizations delivering Medicaid's unusually strong adult hearing aid benefit. Several carriers — CareFirst, Kaiser Permanente, UnitedHealthcare, and Wellpoint — show up on both the marketplace and Medicaid sides.
Maryland's dominant carrier: two CareFirst entities (CareFirst BlueChoice and CareFirst GHMSI/CFMI) offer 2026 individual plans on Maryland Health Connection, and CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield Community Health Plan is one of nine HealthChoice Medicaid MCOs. Its fully insured, state-regulated Maryland plans are subject to the state's hearing aid mandates for children and, where applicable, adults.
Offers 2026 individual plans on Maryland Health Connection and operates one of the nine HealthChoice Medicaid MCOs in the state. Hearing aid benefits on its Medicare plans vary by plan, so check the plan's Evidence of Coverage.
Optimum Choice, a UnitedHealthcare company, sells 2026 marketplace plans, and UnitedHealthcare is one of the nine HealthChoice MCOs that deliver Maryland Medicaid's adult hearing aid benefit. Hearing aid coverage on its Medicare Advantage plans varies by plan, so verify with the plan documents.
Wellpoint offers 2026 individual plans on Maryland Health Connection and is one of the nine HealthChoice Medicaid MCOs (it was formerly known as Amerigroup Community Care). As a state-regulated marketplace carrier, its exchange plans include hearing aid coverage under Maryland's essential-benefit rules.
One of the nine HealthChoice MCOs serving Maryland Medicaid members. Like all HealthChoice plans, it applies Medicaid's clinical criteria for adult hearing aids (40 dB pure-tone average in the better ear, audiologist fitting, physician clearance).
Aetna Better Health is one of Maryland's nine HealthChoice Medicaid MCOs. Aetna sold Maryland marketplace plans in 2024 and 2025 but exited the individual marketplace in all states at the end of 2025.
Yes. Since July 1, 2018, Maryland Medicaid has covered hearing aids, cochlear implants, and bone-anchored devices for adults 21 and older. To qualify for one aid, you generally need a hearing test showing a pure tone average of 40 dB or worse in your better ear, an audiologist's recommendation and fitting, and a physician's medical clearance within six months; getting two aids requires meeting extra criteria. The benefit runs through HealthChoice managed-care plans such as Priority Partners, CareFirst Community Health Plan, UnitedHealthcare, Kaiser Permanente, and Wellpoint, and replacement timing depends on your MCO's medical-necessity rules — call your plan to confirm.
Often, yes — Maryland has mandates for both kids and adults. State-regulated plans must cover hearing aids for children, with an optional cap of $1,400 per aid per ear every 36 months. Since January 1, 2025, state law (§ 15-838.1) extends similar coverage to adults 19 and older — though the Maryland Insurance Administration notes it applies mainly to fully insured large-group plans and some pre-2011 individual plans, while ACA marketplace plans already include hearing aids as an essential benefit without the $1,400 limit. Self-funded employer plans, Medicare, Medicare Advantage, Tricare, and VA coverage are exempt, so ask your insurer which rules apply to you.
Start with Maryland Medicaid if you qualify — it covers hearing aids for both adults and children. Beyond that, the Maryland Technology Assistance Program (MDTAP) publishes a free Hearing Aid & Hearing Assistive Technology funding guide that lists sources of help, and the Division of Rehabilitation Services (DORS) can help pay for hearing aids when hearing loss affects your ability to work. The Governor's Office of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (ODHH) can point you to more resources. If you have private insurance, ask whether Maryland's adult hearing aid mandate applies to your plan before paying out of pocket.
Two big wins. First, effective January 1, 2025, Maryland began requiring certain fully insured private plans to cover medically necessary hearing aids for adults 19 and older — with an optional limit of $1,400 per aid per ear every 36 months and the right to buy a pricier aid and pay the difference without penalty. Second, effective January 1, 2026, licensed hearing aid dispensers — not just audiologists — can order, fit, and dispense covered adult hearing aids, which makes the benefit easier to actually use. If you have a fully insured large-group plan, ask your insurer how the mandate applies to you.
While you sort out coverage, the Hearing Buddy app gives you live captions on your phone — free, instantly.