Hacking N5 CI rechargeable battery??

purplecatty

purplecatty

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I wonder have anyone hacked CI rechargeable battery. I got new battery from Nucelus for free. Few months later. I noticed that battery seem to lose charge and it gets shorter every week. My old rechargeable battery last me 14 hrs while new one 8 hrs and now just 6 hrs. Both are in same size. I suspected that battery is defective. I know electronics well. Even I could not crack the battery case without damaging twistlock and 3 gold contacts. I can very well suspect battery is 3.7 v Lithium Polymer battery.

Basically, I just want to replace battery itself. Im tired of greedy CI company who love to charge 2000% on rechargeable battery. Its not fair for all of CI users who uses rechargeable battery. Why should I pay $200 just for 1. Fortunately, I had dispute with Cochlear Americas pointing out that I need replacement for my job safety and told them cost of battery is threating my job. They sent me new one free. That one was a S**t.

I do have pair of 675 battery CI adapter with cover. I just want to hack rechargeable case so I can rig two Lithuim polymer in parallel in order to last me few days, not hours between charges. I have pair of 3.7v lithuim polymer batteries size of Orbit gum in foil wrap.

Anyone who are electonics who love tinker like I do?

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What type of insurance do you have? Most cover replacement batteries. You could get the kiddie kit that uses AA batteries and connects to processor via a wire
 
I do have insurance. But they do not cover CI rechargeable battery replacement. It does not cover by warranty, its only cover Sound Processor thats it. I talked with Cochlear Americas and that's what they said...

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Health Insurance covers it as Prosthetic Implant. But they do not cover parts replacements for CI.

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purplecatty said:
Health Insurance covers it as Prosthetic Implant. But they do not cover parts replacements for CI.

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That's why I asked because both Kaiser and Medicare covered my batteries. Maybe dependant on the specific insurance or individual to your location,
 
purplecatty said:
Health Insurance covers it as Prosthetic Implant. But they do not cover parts replacements for CI.

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Are you sure about that? Most insurance companies do cover replacement parts under durable medical equipment. Often you have to pay upfront and then they reimburse you and usually there is a set time they will consider replacements, say one year for a battery, 5 years for a replacement processor, etc.
 
It depends on individual insurance. In most cases, HR of Employer decide that. They do that to save money. I had an issue with Aenta insurance that they don't cover for DME like parts and battery.

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purplecatty said:
It depends on individual insurance. In most cases, HR of Employer decide that. They do that to save money. I had an issue with Aenta insurance that they don't cover for DME like parts and battery.

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No, Edith down in Human Resources is not deciding your medical coverage. The company does select a particular package of coverage with the insurer, however, that is broad and predecided. Excluding DME seems rather unlikely. If so, you are quite screwed should you need a catheter. The issue most of us face is getting our DME classified as medically necessary. Your rechargeable batteries are medically necessary for your processor to work.

I don't believe you are understanding your coverage very well and it's more than possible your batteries are being mis-classified. Get someone to help you.
 
BleedingPurist said:
No, Edith down in Human Resources is not deciding your medical coverage. The company does select a particular package of coverage with the insurer, however, that is broad and predecided. Excluding DME seems rather unlikely. If so, you are quite screwed should you need a catheter. The issue most of us face is getting our DME classified as medically necessary. Your rechargeable batteries are medically necessary for your processor to work.

I don't believe you are understanding your coverage very well and it's more than possible your batteries are being mis-classified. Get someone to help you.
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Actually, that is not quite true. While there are some "pre-packaged" plans for smaller groups, most group plans do pick and choose coverage. The basics are the same, ACA standards now, but some companies choose not to cover somethings other companies do cover, etc. Even under DME, there are some inclusions and exclusions. I'm guessing what is going on with the OP is that she has to pay up front and then they decide the need, so it is possible that they don't pay for new batteries, or don't pay until the batteries are x years old. My plan works that way.
 
purplecatty said:
I do have insurance. But they do not cover CI rechargeable battery replacement. It does not cover by warranty, its only cover Sound Processor thats it. I talked with Cochlear Americas and that's what they said...

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I would file a grievance with the insurance company. Especially If you need working implants to do your job.
 
Ok good idea to file grievance against Insurance. I just want them to pay for it cuz I paid insurance and my company paid due bi-weekly. Its alot of money to pay for Ins. And they wont cover. Its a joke. So filing grievance should do.

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I just measured fully charged rechargeable and battery pack that have 2 CI type 675 batteries. Its 2.95 volts. According to information lifted from Rechargeable battery specification, 2.0 to 4.2 volts and 204mah. Humm.. so it means I can use 3.7 v 300 to 800 mah Lithium Polymer battery and hack extra 675 battery pack that I have. It's easy to do it. In that way CI processor will run for long time before battery expired. Its really hackable lol.

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