Missouri just made a big change: as of August 28, 2025, MO HealthNet (Missouri Medicaid) covers hearing aids and cochlear implants for all eligible adults — not just children, pregnant women, and blind Missourians as before. Kids on MO HealthNet have hearing aids covered through EPSDT, and state law also makes private insurers cover hearing aids for children under 18. If you're low-income but not on Medicaid, the Hearing Aid Distribution Program run by the Missouri Commission for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing can help pay for aids when funding is available — it's worth applying even when funds are short, since applications are kept on file.
By Lilly Seay · Updated July 2026
NEW as of August 28, 2025: SB 79 (2025) amended RSMo 208.152 so MO HealthNet covers medically necessary hearing instruments and cochlear implants for all eligible adults, prescribed by an audiologist or dispensed by a hearing instrument specialist. Before this, adult coverage was limited to pregnant women, blind participants, and certain other categories. An estimated 15,000 Missourians gain access; the state projects roughly $13 million over three years (about $3.16 million state share). MO HealthNet has issued an 'Adult Coverage for Hearing Aid Program Services' provider bulletin implementing the change. Specific prior-authorization and replacement rules are in the MO HealthNet Hearing Aid Program Manual — confirm current adult rules with MO HealthNet or your MO HealthNet Managed Care plan, as detailed adult replacement intervals were still being published after the law took effect.
Federal EPSDT law (42 U.S.C. § 1396d(r)(4)) requires every state — Missouri included — to cover hearing aids for Medicaid-enrolled children under 21 at no cost to the family. Children under 21 are covered under EPSDT, which Missouri calls the Healthy Children and Youth (HCY) program — hearing exams, hearing aids, fittings, and repairs are covered when medically necessary. Missouri's CHIP program is part of MO HealthNet for Kids; families apply through the Family Support Division (mydss.mo.gov) and most children are enrolled in a MO HealthNet Managed Care health plan.
Health benefit plans delivered, issued, continued, or renewed in Missouri on or after January 1, 2022 must cover hearing aids for children under 18 at the same scope as MO HealthNet covers for children (replacement as medically necessary, roughly every 5 years, instead of the old rule of one pair from birth to 18). No adult mandate. The statute exempts supplemental policies (accident-only, specified-disease, Medicare supplement, long-term care, short-term plans, etc.), and ERISA self-funded employer plans are outside state regulation.
Statute: RSMo § 376.1228 (SB 432, 2021)
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.
Missouri residents see a crowded field: eight insurers on the 2026 marketplace, four MO HealthNet Managed Care plans that now deliver the state's new adult hearing aid benefit under 2025's SB 79, and Medicare Advantage carriers led by UnitedHealthcare, Humana, and St. Louis-based Essence Healthcare.
Sells 2026 marketplace plans as Healthy Alliance Life and runs Healthy Blue, one of Missouri's four MO HealthNet Managed Care plans. As a state-regulated insurer, its plans must cover hearing aids for children under 18 under RSMo 376.1228.
Centene's Missouri family: Celtic Insurance sells Ambetter marketplace plans, while Home State Health is a MO HealthNet Managed Care plan and also operates Show Me Healthy Kids, the statewide plan for children in foster care.
Active in all three Missouri markets: 2026 marketplace plans, one of the four MO HealthNet Managed Care plans, and the largest Medicare Advantage carrier nationally, with MA hearing benefits delivered through the UnitedHealthcare Hearing network.
The regional Blue plan serving the Kansas City metro's individual market for 2026. As a state-regulated insurer it's subject to Missouri's children's hearing aid mandate.
Offers 2026 individual plans in Missouri under both the Medica and Medica WellFirst names; state-regulated, so the child hearing aid mandate applies to its plans.
Together with UnitedHealthcare it accounts for roughly three-quarters of Medicare Advantage enrollment in the Kansas City area. Most of its MA plans include hearing aid benefits; amounts vary by plan, so check the Evidence of Coverage.
A Medicare-only insurer serving Missouri and Illinois for over 20 years; its plans list hearing coverage among their core extra benefits alongside dental and vision. Details vary by plan.
Yes — and this is new. As of August 28, 2025, MO HealthNet covers medically necessary hearing aids and cochlear implants for all eligible adults under SB 79, prescribed by an audiologist or dispensed by a hearing instrument specialist. Before that, adult coverage was limited to pregnant women, blind participants, and a few other groups — an estimated 15,000 Missourians gained access. Prior-authorization and replacement details live in the MO HealthNet Hearing Aid Program Manual, so confirm current rules with MO HealthNet or your managed-care plan: Healthy Blue, Home State Health, UnitedHealthcare, or Show Me Healthy Kids.
For children, yes. Health plans issued or renewed in Missouri since January 1, 2022 must cover hearing aids for kids under 18, matching what MO HealthNet covers for children — including replacement when medically necessary, roughly every five years (RSMo 376.1228). There's no mandate for adults, and the law doesn't reach self-funded employer plans or supplemental policies like Medicare supplement or short-term plans. Marketplace insurers such as Anthem, Ambetter/Celtic, Blue KC, Medica, Oscar, Cox, and UnitedHealthcare are state-regulated, so their child coverage must follow the mandate.
If you're low-income, first check whether you qualify for MO HealthNet — since August 2025 it covers hearing aids for all eligible adults, and kids are covered too. Beyond Medicaid, the Hearing Aid Distribution Program run by the Missouri Commission for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing helps pay for hearing aids when funding is available — apply even when funds are short, since applications are kept on file. Missouri Assistive Technology's TAP program helps with telephone equipment, and Missouri Vocational Rehabilitation can cover hearing aids you need for work.
All of them. Missouri Medicaid's hearing aid benefit applies whichever MO HealthNet Managed Care plan you're in — Healthy Blue, Home State Health, UnitedHealthcare, or Show Me Healthy Kids, the plan for children in foster care. Since August 28, 2025, that includes medically necessary hearing aids for all eligible adults, not just children. Each plan handles its own prior authorizations, so call your plan's member line to ask how to get a hearing evaluation and what your audiologist needs to submit. Adult replacement rules were still being published after the law took effect, so confirm current details.
Most do, though details vary by plan. Original Medicare doesn't cover hearing aids, but Medicare Advantage plans usually add a hearing benefit. In Missouri you'll see national carriers like UnitedHealthcare and Humana — together they hold roughly three-quarters of Medicare Advantage enrollment in the Kansas City area — plus St. Louis-based Essence Healthcare, a Medicare-only insurer that lists hearing coverage among its plan benefits. UnitedHealthcare runs its benefit through the UnitedHealthcare Hearing network. Allowances and copays differ from plan to plan, so compare each plan's Evidence of Coverage during enrollment.
While you sort out coverage, the Hearing Buddy app gives you live captions on your phone — free, instantly.