Open Forum: CMS Guidance for Wheelchair Coverage

[Guest guest]

"Open Forum: CMS Guidance for Wheelchair Coverage"

The following notice comes courtesy of the ITEM Coalition.

A strong presence in this forum is important to

demonstrate to CMS how important this issue is to the

disability community.

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Special Open Door Forum: Clinical Guidance for Wheelchairs,

Power Wheelchairs, and Power-Operated Vehicles Coverage

Date: Monday, June 14th from 1:00 PM - 5:00 PM (EST)

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services is convening a

Special Open Door Forum on June 14th, in support of its

initiative to produce clinical guidance for the coverage of

wheelchairs, power wheelchairs, and power-operated

vehicles.   The agency's Chief Medical Officer, Tunis,

has identified a multidisciplinary clinical team from

across several federal agencies to address this important

issue.  This team includes physicians, physical therapists,

occupational therapists, and other clinicians with

knowledge and expertise in the evaluation of patients

requiring assistance with mobility. 

This effort seeks to augment the clinical basis for

contractor medical review activities and to support and

improve appropriate access for Medicare beneficiaries who

may require wheelchairs or power-operated vehicles.  This

guidance will be a critical component of the agency's

broader wheelchair agenda that is additionally addressing

other factors in benefit quality and financial management.

Key goals of this forum:

1. Provide an opportunity to introduce members of the

Interagency Wheelchair Work Group.

2. Provide an opportunity for all of our health care

stakeholders related to this issue to give the Interagency

Wheelchair Work Group their input on:

a. How we should structure this clinical guidance, and

b. Which clinical or diagnostic elements they feel should

be incorporated into it.

3. The Interagency Wheelchair Work Group is particularly

interested in comments related to how to organize and

structure the clinical guidance for wheelchair coverage

(for example - whether it is desirable to utilize a

framework centered on disease categorization, or clinical

manifestation and functional assessment).

4. Reinforce the Interagency Wheelchair Work Group's

interest in collecting and reviewing relevant materials.

The CMS is interested in inviting your participation to

this forum, and listening to your input, concerns, and

questions.  In particular, we are hoping to spend the

majority of the forum time in discussions of the makeup of

the clinical guidance itself (as noted in numbers 2 and 3

above). 

We hope to gain a better understanding of how best to

structure this guidance with input at this forum from our

covered Medicare beneficiaries and their advocates, the

provider community that examines and prescribes the need

for this type of equipment, and from the supplier community

who furnish and fit the equipment.

There will be an opportunity for members of CMS' staff,

including the Office of Clinical Standards & Quality, the

Office of Financial Management, and the Center for Medicare

Management, as well as members of the Interagency

Wheelchair Work Group to respond to your remarks and to ask

follow up questions during this forum. 

Participation Instructions:

Date: Monday, June 14th from 1:00 PM - 5:00 PM (EST)

There are 2 ways to participate: by phone or in-person.

Both telephone call-in participants and those who attend

in-person will be given an opportunity to speak and/or ask

questions.  We have arranged for this 4-hour time period to

prevent the need for restrictive time limits, although we

will actively moderate the forum to allow the opportunity

for as many interested persons to participate as possible.

NOTE:  Those interested parties that have prepared written

materials to support their input relative to the key goals

(numbers 2 and 3 above), and who wish to submit a written

copy of their information, are requested to submit this

information to the same (RSVP) email address as listed

below. 

You may alternatively bring a printed copy of such material

to be collected in-person at the forum.

Telephone dial-in instructions:

Dial:  1-800-837-1935  & Reference Conference ID:  7720429

Note: TTY Communications Relay Services are available for

the Hearing Impaired.  For TTY services dial 7-1-1 or 1-

800-855-2880 and for Internet Relay services click here

http://www.consumer.att.com/relay/which/index.html.  

A Relay Communications Assistant will help.

1.     To participate by phone:

Dial:  1-800-837-1935  & Reference Conference ID:  7720429

Persons participating by phone are not required to RSVP.

Note: TTY Communications Relay Services are available for

the Hearing Impaired.  For TTY services dial 7-1-1 or 1-

800-855-2880 and for Internet Relay services click here

http://www.consumer.att.com/relay/which/index.html.  

A Relay Communications Assistant will help.

2.     To participate in-person:

(At the Hubert H. Humphrey building, room 800) an RSVP is

required.

Please RSVP (by close of business Thursday, June 10th) via

email to ODF@... if you plan to attend.  Please

include the word "Registration" in the subject line of your

message, and send us the following information:

a) Your full name

Your organization or representation

c) Your contact information (phone and email)

d) (And if applicable) - the full names of others

accompanying you in-person

Location information:

Please arrive no later than 12:30 PM (EST). 

Photo identification is required at security points.

ADDRESS:

Hubert H. Humphrey Building

Room 800 - The M. Eisenberg Room

200 Independence Ave., SW

Washington, D.C. 20201

Map & Directions: http://www.hhs.gov/about/hhhmap.html

      (Close to the Federal Center SW metro station)

ENCORE:  1-800-642-1687

"Encore" is a recording of this call that can be accessed

by dialing 1-800-642-1687 and entering the Conf. ID #

7720429. 

The recording begins a few hours after the call, and

expires after 4 days.

For Forum Schedule updates, Listserv registration and

Frequently Asked Questions please visit our website at

www.cms.hhs.gov/opendoor.

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