Rehab

Medicare regulations change power wheelchair rules

Rehab Regs, September 2, 2005

New Medicare regulations for providing wheelchairs and power mobility devices restrict the role of physical therapists in conducting face-to-face examinations of Medicare beneficiaries, according to PT Bulletin Online. CMS issued new interim final rules last week based on the Medicare Modernization Act of 2003 that limits payment for motorized or power wheelchairs to those for which a physician, physician assistant, nurse practitioner, or clinical nurse conducts a face-to-face examination of the patient and prescribes the device. The new rules will go into effect October 25, eliminating the current certificate of medical necessity required for Medicare coverage of the devices. Instead, CMS will require documentation from the patient's medical record and a written prescription before suppliers can provide the wheelchair.

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