High-tech manual wheelchair bill introduced

By HME News Staff
Updated 12:09 PM CST, Mon January 27, 2025
WASHINGTON – Sens. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., and Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill., have introduced a bill that would increase access to titanium and carbon fiber ultralight manual wheelchairs for Medicare beneficiaries, AAHomecare has reported.
The Choices for Mobility Act, S. 247, like a similar bill in the previous Congress, would create two HCPCS codes for the base of an ultralight manual wheelchair – one code for a base with titanium or carbon fiber and one for a base without these specialized materials – and allow for an upgrade within a code.
“Improving access to lightweight carbon fiber and titanium wheelchairs will allow individuals with mobility challenges to choose the wheelchair that is best suited for their medical, functional, and lifestyle needs and preferences, without increasing costs to the Medicare program,” the association stated in a bulletin.
AAHomecare is asking stakeholders to reach out to their senators and ask them to co-sponsor S. 247.
The association is also working to get a companion bill introduced in the House of Representatives.
- Find guidance from AAHomecare on messaging your senator here.
- Go here for a draft bill text.
- Related: Stakeholders pushed for H.R. 5371 and S. 5154 to be included in end-of-year legislation in 2024.
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