It’s all about access, engineering … and physics. The spring 2024 coding and funding decision by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) for power seat elevation was a textbook case of good news and bad news. The good news: CMS, citing how seat elevation can support and facilitate transfers and reaching tasks, affirmed…
Seat Elevation: Why a Heavy-Duty Code Matters
Seating the Bariatric Client: Q&A with Brad Peterson, Amylior
Center of gravity, stability, and wheelchair configuration are just a few of the considerations for this population.
Perhaps the most significant misconception that bariatric mobility clients — and their seating teams — must face is the misconception that higher body weights simply require wheelchairs with higher weight capacities and wider seats. A second misconception: Seating clients with body weights in the bariatric range are all similar to each other, and their weight…
Commentary: Dr. Oz Wants Prevention? He Should Embrace CRT
Complex Rehab Technology could be a cost-effective investment for the new CMS administrator.
After his first week as the new administrator for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), Mehmet Oz, M.D., shared four goals that embody the “Make America Healthy Again” mandate of President Donald Trump. Here’s #4: “Shifting the paradigm for health care from a system that focuses on sick care to one that fosters…
RESNA Publishes LPCM Position Paper, Updates Paper on Tilt/Recline/ELRs
The new paper emphasizes postural support in the lying orientation as “a key element of 24-hour posture care management."
The Rehabilitation Engineering and Assistive Technology Society of North America (RESNA) has published two position papers. The first — “RESNA Position on Assistive Technology for Lying Posture Care Management (LPCM)” — is a new paper on the importance of postural support in the lying orientation as “a key element of 24-hour posture care management which…
Commentary: What Schoolhouse Rock’s ‘Bill’ Would Want You to Know About Policy
Bills S. 247 and H.R. 1703 to upgrade ultralightweight wheelchair frames are currently in the Senate and House.
I grew up watching Schoolhouse Rock! between Saturday-morning cartoons. While those short videos on grammar, math and American history were great for my education — the preamble song is why my entire civics class scored 100% on that quiz — one video had an outsized impact on my understanding of the legislative process. “I’m Just…
Defying Gravity: Wheelchair skills can enhance riders’ opportunities
Clinicians examine the abilities that can make environments more accessible for power and manual wheelchair riders.
Complex Rehab Technology (CRT) is defined by individualized configuration: Every seating and wheeled mobility system fits one person only. The owner of that system is also unique — not just in personal goals and function, but also in how well and how fully that person uses that device. For every rider who casually pops wheelies…
Survey: SMA Patients Willing to Tolerate Significant Risks for Potential Treatment Benefits
The report from Cure SMA demonstrates that some needs of spinal muscular atrophy patients and caregivers are still unmet.
The results of a new Cure SMA study showed that people with spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) and their caregivers are willing to tolerate a range of risks while seeking potential treatment benefits. The advocacy association released its research report on March 6. “In the 2022 Cure SMA Risk/Benefit Survey, we asked individuals with SMA and…
CMS Issues HCPCS Code Updates Effective April 1
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services' second biannual 2024 HCPCS coding cycle included changes to hardware codes.
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has released lists of HCPCS coding changes effective April 1, 2025. The list, published March 11, includes updates on codes and modifiers that are new, revised or discontinued for the second biannual 2024 HCPCS coding cycle. Wheelchair transit accessories: Two new codes CMS reported that Palmetto GBA,…
Ekso Bionics to Focus on Indego Personal Exoskeleton Expansion Through CRT, DME Channels
The company shared its plans during a March 3 earnings call.
In an earnings call covering its 2024 full-year results, executives from Ekso Bionics (Nasdaq: EKSO) described the company’s plans to get its Ekso Indego Personal exoskeleton into the hands of more patients. “Revenue of $17.9 million was down from $18.3 million for the same period in 2023,” Ekso Bionics CFO Jerome Wong said, in describing…
Power Assist’s Exhilarating Evolution
With more designs available, seating teams can better choose the best option for every client.
Once upon a time, power assist for manual wheelchairs was dominated by hub-mounted designs incorporated into the wheelchair’s rear wheels. But over the years, those venerable in-hub systems were joined by power-assist systems that mount to the front or the back of folding or rigid wheelchairs to provide more choices for wheelchair riders and seating…