With the deadline for the FDA to publish guidelines related to over-the-counter (OTC) hearing aids looming—the government agency has until 2021, but some say it may be as early as the middle of 2019—many are wondering how that will affect the six major global hearing aid companies. In an article published on the MedCity News website, Nancy Williams, president of Auditory Insight, discusses how the new rules will affect the largest hearing aid companies.

Williams says that hearables—personal sound amplification products (PSAPs) sold OTC—may be the “precursor” for OTC hearing aids with regard to distribution channels, price points, and fitting technologies. The article mentions GN Group’s Jabra Elite Sport earbuds and Starkey Technologies’ partnership with Bragi, a hearables company, as examples of products that may fall into this category.

To read the article in its entirety, please click here.

Source: MedCity News