Helping a young boy experience the world with hearing aids
Noah's story
Raquel Olivas recalls the emotional moment her son Noah could finally hear the world around him — sounds many of us take for granted.
“The first day we brought him home with his hearing aids, we sat in the swing in the back and all of a sudden you hear the birds chirping and he jumps out of the hammock, and he runs and he’s like, ‘I can hear the birds, mom! I can hear the birds!’” she said, through tears. “He was so excited. And that really hit me.”
It had been a long journey for Noah, now 8 years old, to finally get the help he needed with his hearing.
Raquel and her husband Miguel Herrera said after Noah was born, he failed his hearing test twice but they were told it was likely just fluid in his ears. After Noah started school and failed another hearing test, Raquel took him to a specialist who diagnosed him with hearing loss.
“One (ear) is severe and one’s moderate,” Raquel said. “And we don’t know why, and we don’t know if it’s going to get worse but let’s get him going on some hearing aids.”
With help from the UnitedHealthcare Children’s Foundation (UHCCF), Noah’s family qualified for a grant to help cover the cost of new hearing aids. Since 2005, UHCCF has awarded more than 37,000 grants valued at over $75 million. The funding pays for children’s medical expenses not covered, or not fully covered, by a commercial health insurance plan.
“The UnitedHealthcare Children’s Foundation grant definitely gave us a peace of mind,” Raquel said.
Getting support for his hearing has made all the difference for Noah, his parents said.
“Having his hearing aids, he’s more involved in class and listening by being able to actually hear his teacher … and I think that’s where his reading really took off,” Miguel said.
Noah is in 3rd grade, but he’s reading at a 6th-grade level. His parents say his hearing aids have given him more confidence, both in the classroom and socially.
“It helps him gain that confidence to where before he would not be able to hear something and he'd get intimidated,” Miguel said. “Now … he's able to just kind of connect with people and engage in conversations or engage in playtime and feel just comfortable with himself.”
Is your child eligible?
- Grant recipients must be 16 years old or younger at the time of application
- Must meet eligible income requirements
- Must be children under the care of a licensed medical professional with services rendered within the United States
- Primary coverage for a child must be by a commercial health plan, either through an employer or individually purchased. Secondary insurance through Medicaid or CHIP is permissible.
- Children do not need to be insured by UnitedHealthcare.
Do you know a family who could benefit from a children’s medical grant? The UnitedHealthcare Children’s Visit UHCCF.org for more information on how to apply.
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