FederalNewsRadio - WFED: Cuts in Medicare Hurt Wheelchair Users
Patricia Meier, a 63-year-old quadriplegic and Medicare recipient, needs to replace the wheelchair she has used for five years. Normally, Meier could simply use her Medicare benefits to replace the power wheelchair, which adjusts her position to prevent sores, with another one from WestMed Rehab Inc., a medical supplier near her home in Box Elder, S.D. But WestMed, along with several other suppliers across the country, says it will no longer provide power wheelchairs to most Medicare recipients after Nov. 15, when cuts in Medicare reimbursements go into effect.

If Meier were to replace her chair without using Medicare, it could cost her between $17,000 and $20,000. With Medicare, she would pay only 20 percent of that.

With other suppliers saying they, too, won't be able to provide mobility equipment to many of their customers, those living with multiple sclerosis, spinal cord injuries and other conditions could be without the wheelchairs they need to get around.

Many wheelchair users "are going to have to pay out of pocket," said Tim Pederson, CEO of WestMed Rehab.....

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