Tag: repairs

BOULDER, Colo. - Quality Biomedical has been appointed a national service provider by GCE Group. Quality Biomedical will provide both warranty and out-of-warranty service and repair for GCE's Zen-O and Zen-O Lite range of portable oxygen concentrators starting Aug. 23. Jim Clement, GCE's general manager of operations in the U.S., said a big factor in the company's decision was Quality Biomedical's national presence in five major markets, with plans to expand to 12 over the next 18 months. “This...

WATERLOO, Iowa - The Durable Medical Equipment Repair and Training Group (DMERT Group) plans to launch a Level 2 certification for repair technicians for complex rehab technology in August.The group, a collaboration between U.S. Rehab, VGM Education and FIOS DME Repair Training, already offers a Level 1 certification for basic DME like canes, crutches, walkers, scooters, standard Group 2 wheelchairs, beds, lift chairs and standard manual wheelchairs.“(Level 2) dives into the individuality of...

WASHINGTON - The Office of Inspector General has found that veterans waited an average of 69 days for power wheelchair and scooter repairs, more than a month beyond a 30-day timeliness benchmark set by the agency, according to a new report. “These delays occurred because staff and prosthetic service managers at the respective VA medical facilities did not always effectively manage and monitor repair requests,” the OIG stated in a report. “VA medical facility staff, including prosthetic...

WATERLOO, Iowa - U.S. Rehab, a division of The VGM Group, has revamped its popular Tech Training program to provide a “deeper dive” into repairs for power mobility equipment. The program now has two tracks: online training for newer repair techs; and in-person, advanced training for techs with two or more years of experience. Training will be provided by Richard Fuller of Richard Fuller Consulting; Elizabeth Cole, clinical director of U.S. Rehab; and Permobil, Invacare, Motion Concepts...

EWING, N.J. - Goodwill Home Medical, which has been selling power wheelchairs for two years, now services them. Goodwill Home Medical provides a basic check of the wires, battery life and tire treads.The need for affordable power wheelchairs and services is rising as insurance coverage decreases or changes, says Deb Eckenhoff, vice president.“The people we service, these are people who are uninsured, who have high deductibles or are underinsured,” she said.A division of Goodwill...

WASHINGTON - It appears HME providers will now be able to repair equipment, such as power wheelchairs, without having to find the original medical necessity documentation from the original provider, AAHomecare reports.If Medicare paid for the base equipment initially, medical necessity for the equipment has been established, according to the association's initial reading of new guidance from CMS on the matter.“When reviewing DMEPOS claims for repairs, contractors shall only review for continued...

WASHINGTON - The devil's in the details, and the lack of details in CMS's proposal to implement bundled monthly payments for standard manual and power wheelchairs has stakeholders on edge.“There are so many more questions that this proposal raises than it answers, and that should probably be more troubling than anything else,” said Cara Bachenheimer, senior vice president of government relations for Invacare.CMS states in a proposed rule published in the Federal Register on July 11: “We...

WASHINGTON - The brief mention of repair issues in a recent Government Accountability Office (GAO) report on competitive bidding doesn't speak to the severity of the problem, say mobility stakeholders.“I think the GAO report brought some acknowledgement of the problems in the competitive bidding areas, but I think what we want to continue to focus on with CMS is that this is a broader problem requiring fixes not just in the competitive bidding program, but the Medicare program in general,”...

EASTON, Pa. - When a local DME repair shop owner sold his business to another company located far away, provider Ron Frantz saw a great opportunity.“People were calling and complaining that they weren't getting their equipment back fast enough,” said Frantz, medical director of the home healthcare department for Bell Apothecary. “I approached him and we opened up a repair shop right in our facility and now he works for me.”The shop does repairs on equipment such as wheelchairs,...

WASHINGTON - CMS's decision to pay for repairs for capped rental DME provided by The Scooter Store and transferred to beneficiaries on Oct. 24 is a step in the right direction, but not a solution, industry stakeholders say.“Before this, no provider could touch those chairs,” said Martin Szmal, founder of The Mobility Consultants. “Now providers can follow the same guidelines of any beneficiary-owned power wheelchair.”CMS stated in a bulletin last week that Medicare would pay...