Treatment
Hearing Aid Coverage for Children Program
Treatment Authorization Request (TAR) process
- Medi-Cal and HACCP use TARs to support appropriate use of covered benefits
- Some benefits always require a TAR for medical necessity, while others only require a TAR after a certain quantity
- Hearing aids always require an approved TAR
- Ear molds only require a TAR if your child needs more than two ear molds at a time, or more than four ear molds per year
- DHCS anticipates responding to most TARs within 30 days of receipt
TAR supporting documentation
- For new hearing aids, your child’s Medi-Cal enrolled audiologist needs to include these documents when they submit the TAR:
- Hearing aid prescription from an otolaryngologist (or the attending physician if no otolaryngologist is available in the community)
- Signed medical history and physical examination by an otolaryngologist
- Signed audiologic report and hearing aid evaluation
- Specification of ear to be fitted
FAQs
Is authorization needed to see my child’s HACCP-participating audiologist?
While certain audiology services do require a TAR, providers may generally submit the TAR either before or after the appointment. As a result, the answer to this question depends on a particular audiologist’s billing policies.
