Medicare policies in the United States seek to provide all users with a range of financial and health benefits. It is not mandatory to be part of Social Security to start using Medicare, although it is necessary to be at least 65 years old. In spite of this, the requirements for people with disabilities change slightly. In the case of disability it becomes totally individual, so if you have any doubts you should ask the agency directly.
As far as Medicare and disability are concerned, this service, so closely linked to Social Security, has a problem of updating. Wheelchairs are evolving and increasing a bit in price as they integrate very interesting new features. For that reason, for many people with disabilities, one of these chairs is essential, since with a simple button they can stand up and catch up with the rest of the people. But it seems that Medicare does not see this as a necessity and therefore does not cover any of these new features.
What is the problem with Medicare?
The biggest problem with Medicare in this regard is that the cost of such a lift can be $10,000 or more. For that reason, no Social Security disability beneficiary can apply to Medicare to cover these expenses. It’s a big problem because for many people it’s a real necessity that makes them feel a part of society.
As Statnews rightly says, this type of technology is key to full integration. Thanks to lift chairs, people with disabilities who collect Social Security can do everyday things with fewer problems. For that reason, Medicare should change its policy a bit and include a subsidy of some kind for this new technology.
How does this affect Social Security users?
Being a Social Security beneficiary and having Medicare at the same time is fine for many reasons. However, not having access to financial benefit for a lift wheelchair can be devastating for some people. Many disabled U.S. citizens collect only the subsidy, so any type of very advanced technology is out of their budget.
For that reason, Medicare needs to do something about this and send some of its budget to help these types of people, as it is absolutely necessary. Today, wheelchairs have evolved and therefore Medicare coverage must evolve as well. We will see if we will have news in the future or if everything will remain just an attempt by the beneficiaries of Social Security to obtain justified improvements.