Integrating Hearing Health into Employer Benefits: A 2026 Vision

On January 15th, Tuned announced a strategic commitment to establish hearing health as a standard, essential component of employer benefit plans by 2026. In partnership with Colonial Life, the first benefits carrier to adopt their platform, Tuned is aiming to shift the industry focus from reactive care to a modern, preventive model that addresses productivity and safety gaps in the workforce. The announcement also introduced "Tuned Mono," a new voluntary, family-inclusive benefit designed to make hearing screenings and audiologist access affordable and widely available.

The following is a short interview done with Tuned on that news release

Insurance Nerds: Colonial Life has set a precedent by becoming the first benefits carrier to integrate Tuned. What specific outcomes from this partnership will define its success in the coming year, and how do you anticipate this will differentiate Colonial Life's benefits offering from competitors in a crowded broker market?

Colonial Life: Colonial Life is launching Whole Head Health with Tuned because we see a major gap in preventive care that employers and brokers are trying to solve. Our goal over the next year is simple: drive strong employee engagement, demonstrate early impact on productivity and communication at work, and give employers and brokers a benefit that is easy to administer and clearly differentiated.

Being the first carrier to bring this to market allows us to offer something our competitors can’t today — a modern, preventive solution that supports hearing, stress, focus, and overall cognitive health. It strengthens our broker relationships and positions Colonial Life as a leader in bringing forward new, meaningful benefits that improve the employee experience. 

Insurance Nerds: The platform is positioned to "integrate seamlessly." In the context of benefits technology and insurtech solutions, can you elaborate on the technical integration points with existing benefits administration, eligibility, and payroll platforms, and what unique data insights can be generated for employers through the Tuned ecosystem?

Colonial Life: The Tuned platform integrates directly with the systems employers already use, which makes adoption much easier. With Colonial Life Value Proposition being the largest enrollment company in the industry the Colonial Life will communicate and educate employees on the value of this benefit on the Platform the employer has currently.  Additionally Colonial Life can provide Benefits Administration systems for Employers and Brokers.

Insurance Nerds: Tuned is making a bold declaration that 2026 will be the year hearing health becomes a standard benefit. What key market mechanisms (e.g., new legislation, broker incentives, or direct employer demand) will be most crucial to realizing this goal, and what is your target adoption rate for Tuned Mono among U.S. employers?

Colonial Life: We see three key mechanisms:

• • • Consumer technologies rapidly expanding the market demand - With Apple Airpods and Nuance Audio glasses both FDA-approved as OTC hearing aids, we are seeing a major shift in the market toward earlier adoption and more widespread appeal for hearing augmentation among working people. This is shifting the conversation away from just a few, expensive prescription options to a wide range of attractive, appealing options that fit the needs of a broader employee population.  
    • Broker incentives & "whole head health" packages creating parity with dental and vision -  Leaders in the whole head health movement are setting a new best practice, presenting dental / vision / hearing bundles to employers as the standard.  In general, higher commission structures, market demand, and a growing awareness of the link between hearing health and other employee risks are driving this change.
    • Ability to add parent coverage to fill a gap in Medicare and Medicare Advantage coverage - Nearly 1 in 4 employees are also caregivers, many for elderly parents who are at high risk for hearing loss and balance issues, which are not covered by traditional medicare and poorly covered by most Medicare Advantage plans.  Voluntary benefits that can be extended to elderly family members is a simple and meaningful way to fill this market gap. 

Insurance Nerds:  Beyond the general mention of improved productivity and reduced workplace risk, what actuarial or claims data can Tuned and Colonial Life point to that definitively demonstrates the long-term ROI of this preventive hearing health benefit for employers, specifically in terms of reducing overall medical plan costs?

Colonial Life: Clinical studies have shown a significant impact of hearing health on broader healthcare incidents and expenses, including:

• • • • Higher Healthcare Costs. A recent 10 year longitudinal study by Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health found compared to the patients without hearing loss, patients with the condition generated nearly 26% more in total health care costs within two years, a gap that widened to 46% by 10 years, amounting to $22,434 per individual ($20,403 incurred by the health plan, $2,030 by the individual in out-of-pocket costs).  Prevention, protection, and early detection of hearing-related issues can significantly reduce this discrepancy. 
      • Cardiovascular disease ranks among the top causes of death for individuals aged 18-64. Employers bear significant costs, with four of the top ten most expensive conditions falling under this category. Hearing loss, specifically low-frequency hearing loss, often precedes clinical symptoms associated with cardiovascular conditions. Regular hearing screenings can therefore lead to early detection and treatment of these serious health conditions.
      • Slip and Falls. Even people with mild hearing loss are 3-5X more likely to have an accidental fall. For every 10 dB of hearing loss, the risk of fall increases by 140%. Fall related expenses are costly, accounting for over $50 billion USD annually. Vestibular disorder is extremely common, as 1 in 5 between ages 18-64 experience dizziness. 

• • • • Risk of Dementia. Hearing loss has been associated with cognitive decline and has a strong correlation with dementia. Research shows that even mild hearing loss doubles the risk of dementia, while a moderate loss triples it. 

Insurance Nerds:  The platform is positioned to "integrate seamlessly." In the context of benefits technology and insurtech solutions, can you elaborate on the technical integration points with existing benefits administration, eligibility, and payroll platforms, and what unique data insights can be generated for employers through the Tuned ecosystem?

Colonial Life: The Tuned platform is a secure telehealth solution that allows employees to conduct hearing screenings from any device, visit remotely with an audiologist, and receive appropriate clinical devices directly to their homes.  Our employer reporting provides insights into employee utilization, including health management, hearing protection and hearing aid device usage, as well as customer satisfaction and other metrics. We support direct enrollment by employers as well as custom onboarding experiences with carrier, brokerage and PEO partners to securely share census files and other key data.