Medicare Compliance & Reimbursement

The feds may be cracking down on claims for power wheelchairs, but mobility products do have significant benefits - both for beneficiaries and the public fisc.
           
A Medicare recipient who retains mobility through the use of a power wheelchair or scooter saves taxpayers more than $5,300 over a three-year period. That's the finding of a new study that was conducted by RRC Inc. and initiated by The SCOOTER Store on behalf of the durable medical equipment industry. "We found that statistically significant savings persisted for at least 12 quarters after obtaining the powered vehicle," said RRC President Dr. Donald House. "The powered vehicle appears to enable qualified individuals to remain mobile longer, which reduces total Medicare claims over this period."
           
The researchers analyzed Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services data on a sample of Medicare beneficiaries in the years 1994 to 2001, comparing total health care costs paid for those who received medically necessary mobility assistance against total costs paid for a control group of Medicare beneficiaries who had similar diagnoses and would have qualified for power mobility vehicles but did not submit claims.
           
The study found the most significant savings were in inpatient expenses related to hospitalization. Other major savings were found in skilled nursing, home health care and carrier costs.