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Your access to high end rehabilitation equipment such as TiLite wheelchairs, Permobil power chairs, ROHO cushions, and other similar equipment, is severely threatened! In 2003, Congress passed a law that will implement competitive bidding for durable medical equipment, including complex rehab equipment, beginning in 2008. In fact, the bidding on complex rehab power wheelchairs has already started in 10 cities across the U.S.! Under this program only the lowest bidders will be able to provide complex rehabilitation equipment to Medicare Beneficiaries.
How will this affect you? This severely limits your access to appropriate equipment and your choice of equipment or provider:
- Only “winning” bidders will be able to supply product; if you have a long-time relationship with a provider, they may not be a winning bidder and you may have to switch service providers.
- Choice will be limited based on price – not on the functional needs of the individual user; providers will be forced to supply lower quality products.
- This impacts EVERYONE! Other funding sources, including Medicaid and private insurance companies, base their pricing on Medicare pricing.
Join the members of the Users First Alliance who have been working closely with the National Coalition for Assistive and Rehab Technology (NCART) to support a bill that has been introduced in the US House of Representatives, HR 2231. HR 2231 would exempt, or carve out, complex rehab equipment from the competitive bidding program and ensure appropriate access to quality equipment for all wheelchair users.
HR2231 will not pass without support from the wheelchair user community and from healthcare providers that serve this community! Please take time to visit www.complexrehab.org and lend your support to this effort. This link will provide you with valuable information regarding HR2231 and assist you in contacting your local representatives.
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