Category Archives: Insurance Support

Isla Feels More Confident Than Ever with New Ponto 5 SuperPowers

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Katelyn Harkins tells us how getting fit bilaterally with Ponto 5™ SuperPower processors have helped her eight-year-old daughter Isla blossom socially.

Isla was born with bilateral microtia/atresia. She was adopted from China at 20 months old and had no access to sound prior to coming home. She received Ponto bone anchored hearing processors on a softband as loaners from Oticon Medical the month she turned two and loved them immediately. She even insisted on wearing them to nap!

We are privileged enough to have access to excellent hearing solutions from Oticon Medical, which give Isla a near normal audiogram. We are also lucky to have a school for the Deaf nearby, which gives Isla access to education provided in both spoken English and American Sign Language (ASL).

We were very excited to hear OM was coming out with a Ponto 5 SuperPower! Isla’s hearing loss is severe enough that the extra headroom of the SuperPower allows for access to as much sound as possible, and equally little feedback. Isla was thrilled that the upgrade gave her onboard controls for volume and mute.

Isla’s upgrade included getting bilaterally implanted*. In researching implantation, I understood minimally invasive Ponto surgery (MIPS) was minimally invasive compared to the old “long cut” or “pocket” methods: one hole punched in the skin, one hole drilled and filled with a tiny screw. I brought my research to the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) ENT and Isla was his first MIPS surgery. He expressed that he loved the process and was very impressed with the how easily it went. In this video, (Isla was still waiting six months to “snap on” her processors because her skull bones are thin).

The Ponto 5 SPs are amazing!  My daughter has loved her devices from the beginning, and we always made them fun by having a bunch of different colored softbands to choose from each morning. She has absolutely blossomed in public and more crowded situations with the upgrade to P5 SPs. She’s more willing to get out there and play or join a group of kids she doesn’t know. Absolutely worth it!

* Ponto surgery is contraindicated for patients under 5 years of age. The subject here is shown wearing two ponto 5 superpowers on a softband but has undergone the surgery stated by the parent. Outcomes and healing times wary patient to patient. Please consult your caregiver.

Oticon Medical Insurance Support Helped Katie Upgrade to Ponto 4

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When Katie Maslar ran into difficulty with getting insurance coverage, Oticon Medical’s  Reimbursement Support Team helped her file the appropriate paperwork and get her upgraded device. In her own words, Katie shares her experience going through the insurance process and how she’s hearing better with her new Ponto 4.

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I had started hearing really good things about the Ponto 4 on social media, and I hadn’t upgraded in a few years, so I decided to look into an upgrade. I initially saw my audiologist and ENT to fill out the appropriate paperwork to submit to my insurance. After not hearing anything for a couple months, I reached out to Oticon Medical. Unfortunately, my doctor’s office never submitted the paperwork.

In the interim, my previous Ponto Plus Power got broken, so my need for a new processor was even greater. After going back and forth with my insurance for a few months, the Oticon Medical staff and I were able to sort it out. I cannot say enough good things about how easy Oticon Medical made the process for me. Once we determined that I would be able to get the new device, the upgrade process was very simple and quick! I had the new Ponto 4 in a matter of days.

I’m very happy with the new features in Ponto 4. I honestly don’t mind not having onboard controls at all, since I really never need to manually tell the Ponto 4 what to do. I love that it’s smaller and more discreet. I was a little nervous, because I have an Android™ phone and wasn’t sure how easily they would work together, but I don’t find the need for the ConnectClip™ to really stop me from anything. It is much simpler to set and work, especially compared to using a streamer with my previous device.

It’s also really nice to be able to control the volume and check the battery level from my phone and not need the ConnectClip to do so. I am only deaf on my right side and have normal hearing in my left ear, but when listening to music and YouTube, I prefer to listen through my Ponto. The ease of connecting the ConnectClip with my tablet, and the sound quality it gives me, is great. I really do love it!

I can hear people in noisy environments easier now. The Ponto 4 makes a huge difference.

The biggest thing the Ponto 4 does for me is give me confidence. I’m no longer constantly straining to hear people and worried that if they speak, I will accidentally ignore them. I can hear people on my deaf side without even really thinking about it! I’m more confident and spend less time worrying about who’s speaking and whether I’ll hear them. I’m happy when I can pay attention to all the details and sound quality the Ponto 4 gives me, because that’s when I realize just how fantastic it is.

I liken the difference to this: My old processor was like writing with the blunt tip of a pencil, and the Ponto 4 is like writing with the tip of a sharp pencil.