Minnesota is one of the best states in the country for hearing aid coverage: since the 2023 law change, state-regulated health plans must cover hearing aids for people of ALL ages — one aid per ear every three years — not just kids. Medical Assistance (Medicaid) also covers hearing aids, batteries, and accessories through a state contract. On top of that, the state's telephone equipment program lends free amplified and captioned phones, and DEED Vocational Rehabilitation can help pay for hearing aids you need for work.
By Lilly Seay · Updated July 2026
Minnesota Health Care Programs (Medical Assistance and MinnesotaCare) cover hearing aids for adults when prescribed as medically necessary by an audiologist, along with exams, fittings, batteries, and accessories. DHS purchases aids through a state volume-purchase Hearing Aid Contract (contracted vendors, models, and prices are published by DHS), and providers must use contract vendors. Replacement generally follows the one-aid-per-ear-every-3-years standard that also applies to commercial plans; members with limited benefit sets are excluded. Many members are in managed care plans (e.g., Blue Plus, UCare), which must cover the benefit. No 2024-2026 cuts identified.
Federal EPSDT law (42 U.S.C. § 1396d(r)(4)) requires every state — Minnesota included — to cover hearing aids for Medicaid-enrolled children under 21 at no cost to the family. Children under 21 on Medical Assistance are covered under EPSDT — in Minnesota the screening program is called Child and Teen Checkups (C&TC) — including hearing screening, diagnostic audiology, hearing aids, earmolds, batteries, and repairs with no arbitrary limits. Minnesota's coverage for higher-income kids runs through MinnesotaCare (the state's CHIP-funded program); families apply through MNsure or their county human services office.
Health plans must cover hearing aids for all individuals — the 2023 Legislature struck the previous limit to persons 18 years of age or younger. The session law set no special effective date for this section, so it took effect August 1, 2023 under Minnesota's default rule, applying in practice as plans are issued or renewed. Coverage: one hearing aid per ear every three years for hearing loss not correctable by other covered procedures, with no special deductible, coinsurance, copay, or limits beyond those on other benefits. Applies to Minnesota-regulated group/individual plans and HMOs including MNsure plans; self-insured (ERISA) employer plans and Medicare are exempt. Originally enacted 2003 for children.
Statute: Minn. Stat. §62Q.675 (amended 2023, Laws ch. 70, art. 3, §2)
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.
Minnesota's all-ages hearing aid mandate binds every state-regulated carrier, so the entire 2026 MNsure lineup — Blue Plus, HealthPartners, Medica, UCare, and Quartz — must cover one hearing aid per ear every three years. Blue Plus and UCare also serve Medical Assistance (Medicaid) members through managed care, and Medica's early-2026 acquisition of UCare will reshape the market in 2027.
Blue Plus offers 2026 individual plans on MNsure and serves Medical Assistance members through managed care. As a state-regulated carrier its plans must follow Minnesota's all-ages hearing aid mandate — one aid per ear every three years with no special cost-sharing.
Two HealthPartners entities offer 2026 MNsure plans (HealthPartners, Inc. and the newly added Health Partners Insurance Company). Its Minnesota-regulated plans are subject to the all-ages hearing aid mandate under Minn. Stat. §62Q.675.
Offers 2026 individual plans on MNsure and completed its acquisition of UCare in early 2026 — only Medica-branded plans will remain on the marketplace for 2027. Medica's state-regulated plans must cover one hearing aid per ear every three years under the Minnesota mandate.
A leading MNsure individual-market carrier for 2026 that also serves Medical Assistance (Medicaid) members; UCare-branded plans will leave the marketplace after 2026 following the company's early-2026 acquisition by Medica. Its state-regulated plans follow the all-ages hearing aid mandate, and its Medicaid plans must cover the Medical Assistance hearing benefit.
Offers 2026 individual plans on MNsure in parts of the state. As a Minnesota-regulated plan it must comply with the one-aid-per-ear-every-three-years mandate.
Yes. Medical Assistance and MinnesotaCare cover hearing aids for adults when an audiologist prescribes them as medically necessary, along with exams, fittings, batteries, and accessories. The state buys aids through a volume-purchase Hearing Aid Contract, so your provider will use contracted vendors and models at published prices. Replacement generally follows the same one-aid-per-ear-every-three-years standard that applies to commercial plans, though members with limited benefit sets are excluded. Many members get the benefit through managed-care plans like Blue Plus and UCare, which must cover it — call the number on your card if you're not sure where to start.
Yes — Minnesota is one of the few states with an all-ages mandate. Since the 2023 law change took effect August 1, 2023, state-regulated health plans — including MNsure plans from Blue Plus, HealthPartners, Medica, UCare, and Quartz — must cover one hearing aid per ear every three years for hearing loss that can't be corrected by other covered procedures, with no special deductibles, copays, or limits beyond what applies to your other benefits. Self-insured employer plans and Medicare are exempt, so if your coverage comes through a large employer, ask HR whether the plan is self-funded before assuming the mandate applies.
Minnesota gives you several paths. If you qualify for Medical Assistance or MinnesotaCare, hearing aids are covered. The Telephone Equipment Distribution (TED) Program lends free amplified and captioned phones, the Minnesota STAR Program can help you try assistive technology and find funding, and DEED Vocational Rehabilitation Services can help pay for hearing aids you need for work. The DHS Deaf and Hard of Hearing Services Division also keeps a list of hearing aid financial resources. And thanks to the all-ages mandate, your own state-regulated health plan may already owe you coverage — one aid per ear every three years — so check there first.
For state-regulated private plans, the answer is one hearing aid per ear every three years under Minn. Stat. §62Q.675 — so if your aids are at least three years old, your plan should cover replacements for hearing loss that other covered procedures can't correct. Cost-sharing can't be worse than what applies to your other benefits. Medical Assistance generally follows the same three-year standard, with aids purchased through the state's Hearing Aid Contract. The mandate doesn't reach self-funded employer plans or Medicare, so if that's your situation, check your plan documents or call member services to see what your plan offers.
While you sort out coverage, the Hearing Buddy app gives you live captions on your phone — free, instantly.