General Guidelines Regarding Medicare Coverage
If you’re not getting around quite as easily as you used to, you may be a little envious when someone comes racing by on a mobility scooter—especially if you learn the cost of that scooter was covered by Medicare.
Envy may turn to confusion, or worse, if you learn Medicare won’t get you that same scooter. After all, shouldn’t Medicare extend the same courtesy to you?
Well, it may. First, here are the general guidelines concerning Medicare coverage of durable medical equipment.
To be covered, equipment must be medically-necessary, appropriate for use in the home, and likely to last at least three years. (For more information about this, you’ll find a great resource at www.medicareinteractive.org.)
The bar is set higher when it comes to mobility assistive power scooters. To qualify for coverage for such a vehicle, you need a medical examination and a written order from your doctor certifying that the scooter is a necessity in your day-to-day life at home. Simply having difficulty dressing, bathing, getting out of bed, and so forth, isn’t enough to qualify you for this coverage, however. In order to qualify for a Medicare-covered scooter, you need to be unable to perform your daily functions at home while using a cane, walker, or standard wheelchair.
Though Medicare sets the bar high, you have the right to a scooter (or, alternatively, to a power wheelchair) if your doctor certifies that you meet the conditions.
But even if you think you don’t qualify, it could serve you well to discuss any mobility concerns with your doctor, who may have other helpful suggestions to make.
If you do qualify for a scooter, you may need, depending on where you live, to get it from a Medicare-approved supplier. Other rules are likely to apply as well, For example, if you’re enrolled in a Medicare Advantage plan, you’ll have to follow any rules or conditions specified in your plan.
If you have any questions about which plans may be most advantageous in helping you get a modern mobility scooter or other assisted mobility device, MedicareMall will be glad to advise you.
Whether you’re new to Medicare or a veteran of the program, it’s never easy to walk the Medicare maze alone in search of the best and most cost-effective plans to meet your health care needs. MedicareMall has over two decades’ experience shopping the market for the best plans to meet our clients’ needs, and we’re eager to do just that for you. Payments, coverage considerations, and service can vary widely from company to company, and you don’t want to be in the dark when it comes to your health care. Contact MedicareMall now and we’ll answer any questions you may have about Medicare supplement insurance (Medigap plans), Medicare Advantage, prescription drug plans, or any other type of coverage you’d like to know more about.
Mobility Assistive Power Scooters © 2012 MedicareMall.com