Lift chairs and more

If you are thinking about purchasing a lift chair, and are going to file for Medicare, you may be wondering just how big of a task you will be taking on. Filing for Medicare on your lift chair is actually a fairly simple process. You will need 3 things to file:

• a CMN (Certificate of Medical Necessity)
• A bill of sale
• A doctor’s prescription for a lift chair and your doctor’s signature on the CMN

On top of just these three things, most distributors or retailers that sell lift chairs will provide the CMN straight from their website or through the mail if you request it. They will also provide you with the bill of sale after your purchase. On the CMN, there are 5 questions that your doctor will need to answer.

1. Does patient have severe arthritis of the hip or knees?
2. Does patient have a severe neuromuscular disease?
3. Is the patient completely incapable of standing up from regular armchair or any chair in his/her home?
4. Once standing, does the patient have the ability to ambulate (walk or move about)?
5. Have all appropriate therapeutic modalities to enable the patient to transfer from a chair to a standing position (such as medication, physical therapy) been tried and failed? If YES, this is documented in the patient’s medical records.

After your doctor has completed the CMN and signed it, you must mail this along with a copy of your prescription for the lift chair and a copy of the bill of sale to your Medicare regional claims office. If you are approved, a reimbursement check will be mailed back to you. And remember, only the lift mechanism on lift chairs will be reimbursed.