no disney related but wheelchair needed

[MrsPiglet]

My brother just got both his legs amputated about the knees. the rehab hospital has ordered him the electric wheelchair, but in the meantime gave him a narrow wheelchair. He needs a wide chair for his home. he was told medicare would not pay for both.
where is the best place to get one? We don't have much money so I can just order one for hundreds of dollars. Any one have any suggestions.

 

[SueM in MN]

It's early, so my brain is not fully functioning yet, but here's some thoughts.

I'm not sure what you mean by a narrow chair and a wide chair. Usually, narrow or wide refers to the size of the seat and the wheelchair is sized for the person who uses it. So someone would either fit in a narrow chair or a wide chair, but not both.
Also, I'm not sure if you mean medicare won't pay for both a narrow and a wide chair or a power chair and a manual chair. Someone with a power wheelchair really needs both a power and a manual wheelchair. There are situations where one is better than the other and if the power one is not usable for some reason, you need a manual as backup.
Do you know if he has talked with the social worker at the hospital? They are usually the ones who know the resources in the area that might be able to lend or help you get what he needs. The social worker also helps arrange that all the equipment needed for discharge is ordered and ready to go.
Typically, the chair he is using at the rehab hopital is part of the hospital's equipment and he won't leave the hospital with that exact wheelchair. Before you order a chair for home use, you need to know if he needs any special equipment for the chair. For example, you need to know if he needs a seat that reduces pressure (like a special air cushion or a gel-filled cushion). If they are ordering one of those for his power wheelchair, he might be able to transfer it from one wheelchair to the other, but you need to know what size it is. His therapists should be able to tell you exactly what he needs.

 

[mamajoan]

Totally agreeing with everything Sue has posted.

A meeting should be scheduled for your brothers family/caregivers prior to his discharge from Rehab. If not ASK FOR ONE NOW.
At that time all of his equipment needs should be discussed. Hopefully one of the therapy staff will have made a home visit to evaluate equipment needs including, bath/shower bench,sliding board, sleeping needs (hospital bed, trapeze), toileting needs (bedside commode, elevated toilet seat, grab bars in bathroom). Medicare will rent a wheelchair for him until his powerchair is delivered. This should be ordered by the rehab team prior to discharge. If he will be using the powerchair, how will he get into the community? His caregivers will need to be able to contact local van transport or install a lift in their pov. Also Homecare visits may be initiated including, RN, OT, PT and maybe a Home Health Aide.

I don't know if guidelines have changed, but Medicare used to only pay for one of the following.. walker or wheelchair. If the patient already had a manual chair and doctor found it necessary for patient to use a powerchair.. it was a battle but medicare will do it. I don't think I have ever had medicare pay for two w/c simultaneously.. most of the time the family would purchase a manual chair while medicare paid for the powerchair. We used to tell patients to let medicare cover the more expensive item, which was the wheelchair.

Hope this makes sense... dealing with medicare is always confusing.

 

[PattnFmly]

Agree with all the above, and just have another thought. If money is seriously an issue and all avenues through the rehab's social service dept have been exhausted, sometimes local Lions Clubs or Knights of Columbus etc will help with adaptations to a home, ramps or even wheelchairs. My parents had this problem with my brother. Insurance would only cover so much and they needed certain equipment. In their case it was the KoC and they were very helpful and still check on my brother to see if he's all set with everything he needs.