Do you accept my insurance for hearing aids?

We work with all major insurance providers including Medicare, Medicaid, PPO, HMO plans, and workers' compensation claims. Our insurance specialists will verify your benefits and help maximize your coverage to minimize out-of-pocket costs.

What makes California Hearing Center different?

We are the first clinic worldwide to receive the Inspired by Ida quality benchmark for person-centered care. With over 27 years of experience, we combine cutting-edge technology with personalized care, taking time to understand your individual needs and lifestyle.

What services do you provide?

We offer comprehensive hearing evaluations, hearing aid fitting and programming, tinnitus management, balance testing, custom ear protection, and ongoing hearing healthcare support using state-of-the-art diagnostic equipment.

Tinnitus Specialist in San Mateo: Dr. Emily McMahan’s Bay Area Clinics & Telehealth

If you’ve heard of Dr. Emily E. McMahan, AuD — through the American Tinnitus Association, Lenire® research, or Alaska Hearing & Tinnitus Center (All Ears Alaska) — you might assume you’d have to fly to Anchorage to see her.

The good news? You don’t.

Through a unique partnership with California Hearing Center, Dr. McMahan brings her tinnitus expertise and Lenire protocols directly to the Bay Area via traveling tinnitus clinics in San Mateo, combined with tinnitus telehealth options for California residents where licensing and regulations allow.

If you’ve been searching for a tinnitus specialist in San Mateo or wondering how to access Lenire® Bay Area clinic days without rearranging your life, this guide walks you through exactly how it works.

Do I really have to fly to Alaska to see Dr. McMahan?

Short answer: No.

Historically, many patients did travel to Anchorage to see Dr. McMahan because of her tinnitus-only focus and early experience with Lenire®. Today, she uses a combination of:

Field clinics at carefully chosen partner locations (like California Hearing Center in San Mateo).
Multi-state licensing that allows her to provide tinnitus telehealth where permitted.
Local audiology partners (like the CHC team) who can handle in-person testing, follow-up visits, and ongoing support.

That means Bay Area patients can often get:

Key in-person visits (evaluation, Lenire fitting, major follow-ups) in San Mateo.
Some check-ins and counseling through secure telehealth, depending on location and licensing rules.
Day-to-day support from California Hearing Center in San Mateo and San Carlos.

So instead of rearranging your life around cross-country travel, you can build a tinnitus plan that fits your actual life in the Bay Area.

How the Bay Area tinnitus clinic model works

When Dr. McMahan partners with California Hearing Center, care typically follows a hybrid model:

1. Local evaluation at California Hearing Center (San Mateo or San Carlos)

Your journey often starts with a comprehensive tinnitus evaluation with the CHC audiology team:

Detailed tinnitus and medical history.
Full diagnostic hearing assessment (beyond a basic screen).
Middle-ear and inner-ear testing where appropriate.
Discussion of how tinnitus is impacting your life and goals.

This visit lays the groundwork for any future work with Dr. McMahan and determines whether advanced options like Lenire® make sense for you.

Learn more about what this looks like on our Tinnitus Therapy page.

2. Tinnitus specialist days: Lenire & advanced consults in San Mateo

On scheduled Lenire Bay Area clinic days, Dr. McMahan travels to California Hearing Center – San Mateo to see patients in person. These days may include:

Advanced tinnitus consults for complex cases.
Lenire candidacy evaluations and detailed counseling.
Lenire fittings and initial programming.
Check-ins for patients who are mid-way through their Lenire program.

Because her time on-site is limited, these clinics are usually scheduled into specific blocks of days, and appointments often fill quickly. That’s why we encourage interested patients to join the Tinnitus Clinic Waitlist (more on that below).

For an overview of these clinic days, see Tinnitus Therapy & Lenire in San Mateo — Featuring Dr. Emily McMahan.

3. Telehealth follow-ups (where allowed) + local CHC visits

After your initial in-person visits, follow-up care may be a mix of:

Telehealth visits with Dr. McMahan (for counseling, progress review, and treatment adjustments) when licensing and regulations allow.
In-person visits with the CHC audiology team in San Mateo or San Carlos for hearing checks, device checks, and any hands-on needs.

This combination lets you keep access to a tinnitus specialist who helped shape Lenire research while still having a local clinic you can visit without flying out of state.

What can be done via tinnitus telehealth in California?

Tinnitus telehealth can be highly effective for certain parts of care, especially if you’re in California but not right next door to San Mateo or San Carlos.

Often, telehealth is ideal for:

Education and counseling about what tinnitus is and how habituation works.
Reviewing your progress with sound therapy or Lenire®.
Discussing lifestyle, stress, and coping strategies that are hard to fit into rushed, in-person medical visits.
Adjusting expectations, tracking progress, and problem-solving between in-person check-ins.

Telehealth does not replace all in-person care. You still need things like:

Physical ear exams when indicated.
Diagnostics that require specialized equipment.
Device fittings and hands-on troubleshooting.

That’s where the combination of California Hearing Center’s local presence and Dr. McMahan’s specialist expertise really pays off.

Do I have to live in San Mateo to benefit?

No. Our tinnitus clinics and telehealth options are designed to support patients from across:

San Mateo County – San Mateo, Redwood City, Burlingame, Foster City, Belmont, San Carlos.
The wider Bay Area – San Francisco, Palo Alto, Mountain View, Santa Clara, Oakland, Berkeley, Fremont, and beyond.

For many people, the pattern is:

Drive in for one or two key clinic days in San Mateo (evaluation, Lenire fitting, or specialist consult).
Handle many follow-up steps via tinnitus telehealth in California and local CHC visits.

This reduces the time you need to spend commuting while still ensuring that your tinnitus care is coordinated, expert, and grounded in real-world evidence.

What a full Bay Area tinnitus journey with Dr. McMahan & CHC can look like

Here’s a simplified example of how your care might unfold:

Step 1 – Contact & waitlist: You reach out to California Hearing Center, schedule a tinnitus evaluation, and optionally ask to join the Tinnitus Clinic Waitlist to be notified of upcoming clinic days with Dr. McMahan.
Step 2 – Local evaluation: You complete a full tinnitus and hearing assessment in San Mateo or San Carlos. We review whether tinnitus therapy, hearing support, or Lenire could help.
Step 3 – Specialist clinic day: On a scheduled Lenire / tinnitus specialist day, you see Dr. McMahan in San Mateo for an advanced consult and (if appropriate) Lenire candidacy evaluation and fitting.
Step 4 – Structured program: You follow a 12-week tinnitus or Lenire program with a mix of local visits and telehealth check-ins, depending on your location and needs.
Step 5 – Long-term maintenance: Once your tinnitus is more manageable, you shift into a lighter, maintenance-style schedule with periodic check-ins.

The exact path will be customized to you, but the overall goal is the same: get you access to world-class tinnitus expertise without requiring a plane ticket.

Who this traveling clinic + telehealth model is ideal for

This model tends to work especially well if you:

Live in or near the Bay Area and want a tinnitus specialist in San Mateo rather than out-of-state travel.
Have tried basic tinnitus advice and need more advanced, structured care.
Are interested in Lenire® and want to work with a provider who has both research and real-world experience.
Need flexibility between in-person and telehealth because of work, family, or health constraints.

FAQ: Traveling tinnitus clinics & telehealth

How often does Dr. McMahan come to the Bay Area?

Clinic days are scheduled in advance and offered in limited blocks. Because demand is high, we recommend joining the Tinnitus Clinic Waitlist so we can notify you as soon as new dates are confirmed.

Can I do my entire Lenire program via telehealth?

No. You’ll still need in-person appointments for evaluation, fitting, and device setup. However, many follow-up discussions and progress reviews can be done via telehealth when appropriate, particularly if you live farther from San Mateo.

Do I have to be a California resident?

Local regulations and licensing determine where telehealth can be provided. We’ll clarify what’s possible based on your location when you contact us. For in-person clinic days in San Mateo, patients often come from across the Bay Area and sometimes from out of state.

Join the Tinnitus Clinic Waitlist

Because Lenire Bay Area clinic days and in-person visits with Dr. McMahan are limited, the best way to secure a spot is to:

Schedule a tinnitus evaluation with California Hearing Center.
Ask to be added to the Tinnitus Clinic Waitlist so you’ll be among the first notified when new dates open.

When you reach out, it helps to share:

Your name and preferred contact info.
Your city (San Mateo, San Carlos, SF, Palo Alto, Fremont, etc.).
How long you’ve had tinnitus and how it affects you.
Whether you’re interested in Lenire® specifically, general tinnitus therapy, or both.

Ready to explore a tinnitus plan that doesn’t require a flight?

You don’t have to choose between no help and a long trip to Alaska. With traveling clinics, telehealth, and a strong local team in San Mateo and San Carlos, you can get advanced tinnitus care right here in the Bay Area.