[kemiller2002]

Yes, it is. What is also really nuts is that insurance will cover cochlear implants. I mean it's cool that they do, but my friend explained it to me that the implants are a medical procedure and the hearing aids are classified as a "luxury item" or some such. The brutal and insulting part to the story is that he found this out because his daughter had cancer, and she lost her hearing due to the chemo therapy, which means that she was forced to lose her hearing due to medical procedures.