Packer Perspective: Supporting Medicare Coverage of Seat Elevation Systems

Published in Complex Rehab on March 15, 2023

By Greg Packer, President, U.S. Rehab

I hope everyone is having a good start to 2023 as we are almost done with the first quarter of business already.

I wanted to make sure that all of you have had the opportunity to give your comments on the seat elevation proposed rule. If you have not yet supplied your comments, I recommend that you please take the time to submit your supporting comments on behalf of the CRT industry. All comments must be in by the end of the day this Friday, March 17.

There have been over 1,600 comments submitted already, and we really appreciate all the work our members have done so far to help spread awareness of this important proposal.

We have a couple options through the industry to file comments. U.S. Rehab has teamed up with ITEM coalition and NCART, as well as AAHomecare and others, to share where to submit comments, including www.Rise4Access.org and https://www.cms.gov/medicare-coverage-database/view/national-submit-public-comment.aspx?DocID=309&commentDocType=nca&fromPage=doc&ncacaldoctype=NCA&status=Open+for+Public+Comment&sortBy=status&bc=17.

Key Talking Points:

Thank CMS for their proposal and support the benefit category determination and coverage decision.
Recommend extension of coverage proposal to improve reach and line of sight to support shoulder, upper spine, and neck integrity.
Support access to seat elevation for users of Group 2 Power wheelchairs.
Seek clarity on proposed limitations of “weight-bearing transfer” and evaluation criteria.

If you have any questions, please reach out to us at U.S. Rehab anytime. We are happy to help.

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