WASHINGTON—As reported by PRNewswire-USNewswire: For years, William Welch, 58, was a truck driver, a free spirit traveling along the roads. But now Welch spends his days in a Brunswick, Md., apartment, barely able to move from a chair to the refrigerator because his Medicare-supplied power wheelchair is broken and he can’t find anyone to fix it, says the American Association for Homecare.
 

WASHINGTON, D.C., Feb. 1, 2013—It’s hard to recall a week with worse news for the home care community than what occurred last Wednesday with the CMS announcement about Round 2 prices. Home care providers pride themselves in meeting Medicare’s requirements by supplying top quality products with attention to first-rate service and professionalism. An approach to their business that focuses on the Medicare beneficiary is the key to success for many home care companies.

WASHINGTON, Sept. 19, 2012—Stakeholders are hopeful that eleventh-hour changes will smooth Medicare’s new prior authorization process for beneficiaries who have prescriptions for power wheelchairs. But the stakeholders—including homecare- providers, physicians and advocates for Americans with disabilities—remain concerned about whether the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has done enough to ensure that patient care and services won’t be jeopardized by the new program.

WASHINGTON, DC, September 21, 2012—The American Association for Homecare applauds a bipartisan bill introduced today in the House of Representatives that would implement market-based pricing for home medical equipment and services such as oxygen therapy, wheelchairs, and other durable medical equipment that allow Medicare beneficiaries to remain safe and independent at home.

WASHINGTON, Aug. 7, 2012—The American Association for Homecare (AAHomecare) is disappointed that Medicare is implementing a prior authorization program for power wheelchairs without including a key component. Physicians, providers and advocates for disabled Americans insist that patient care will be jeopardized without a clinical template to help physicians document a patient's medical need for mobility assistance.