Manual Wheelchairs

Clinical Benefits & Funding Issues of Titanium Upgrade to Manual Wheelchairs

Funding for titanium upgrades to manual wheelchairs has become increasingly difficult over the last several of years. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) reports when they created the K0005 (ultralightweight manual wheelchair) code back in the early 1990’s they took the added expense for special materials, such as titanium or carbon fiber, into consideration when they developed the initial K0005 allowable. Based on Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) inquiries we do not believe this to be the case which is why we continue to pursue policy changes through CMS and Congress. Providing titanium upgrades wasn’t an issue until this 20+ year old information surfaced for the first time a few years back. Over time the reimbursement rates have been adjusted according to the annual Consumer Pricing Index (CPI) updates but that isn’t enough to cover the added cost of titanium.

Justifying a Power Assist Device

For more information about power assist devices check out our 4-part series here:Part 1,Part 2, Part 3, and Part 4.

Anytime there is a need for complex rehab technology, it’s important to understand the criteria for reimbursement and how to justify it appropriately. We looked recently at the coverage criteria for power assist devices and this week we will look in more detail at the justification piece. This is important because once you’ve identified that a client meets the criteria for the device, you need to know how to document to get it covered.

Top Ten Blog Posts of 2019: #5 - #1

Permobil is looking back on the top ten blog post from 2019. Here are the blog posts that earned the top 5 spots on our list.