PSAPs, which join a broad category of devices that include so-called hearables, can also cancel out unwanted noise, stream music, even translate a foreign language into English. Through Bluetooth, I can use my hearing aids to talk on the phone. In addition to these, I own Hearphones, manufactured by Bose. When I ride the subway in New York, I use the noise-canceling feature in the Hearphones to silence the world around me. At the same moment, I can stream music from my iPhone into my head.

There I am, sitting on the 1 train downtown, hearing no sound except the soft music of one of Chopin’s nocturnes for piano.

The Hearphones are also very helpful at a party or a restaurant, where an app on my phone enables me to silence the conversations of people behind me, and amplify just the voice of the person I’m with.

There are more than a few reservations about the new over-the-counter hearing aids, though. Some of these come from audiologists, whose business will surely be affected by the act. Taking audiologists out of the process raises the possibility that people won’t get the device appropriate to their needs. In the long run, a hearing aid that doesn’t work or fit can be worse than nothing. And medical conditions that require intervention might well be missed without a professional exam.

But in general, over-the-counter devices will make good hearing available to millions of people. The average cost of hearing aids in this country is $4,600 a pair. The nonprescription devices won’t be free, but they’ll be cheaper — some for sale right now cost $300 to $350. My Hearphones cost $500.

The real problem is that in many cases, hearing devices are not covered by insurance. And even at $300, they will be expensive enough to keep many people from getting help. I’ll allow someone to my right to explain why the ability to hear shouldn’t be covered by all Americans’ insurance.

Why doesn’t Medicare cover hearing aids? Why do so many private insurers fail to do so? I understand the need to keep overall costs down, but something’s wrong when something as basic as hearing the world is considered one of those luxuries conservatives mock as “free stuff.”