The NCOA survey found that the primary reason most people who suffered from an untreated hearing impairment did so because they denied that they had a hearing problem. 

More than two thirds of those who knew they suffered from mild hearing loss and over one half of those who suffered from a severe loss said that their hearing was not bad enough and that they thought that they could get along without using hearing aids if only people would speak clearly and quit mumbling.

The third most common reason in the survey for not accepting treatment was a negative report from friends or a family member who had a bad experience with a conventional or an improperly fit hearing aid.

A smaller number of persons refused to correct their problem because of cosmetic concerns and were unaware that CIC hearing aids virtually disappeared while being worn.

A much smaller number of the respondents in the survey said the price of hearing aids were too expensive.

The vast majority of respondents who later were fit, reported they were amazed how much they had missed. The number one regret from these respondents was that they had waited so long to do something about their hearing loss and  wasted years of their life.