Hi blucken,
Here you go -
1. How many people in the U.S. need a wheelchair?
Trends and Issues in Wheeled Mobility Technologies:
IV. The Wheelchair Marketplace
"In the U.S. an estimated 2.2 million people currently use wheelchairs
for their daily mobility"
http://www.ap.buffalo.edu/idea/space%20workshop/Papers/WEB%20-%20Trends_Iss_WC%20(Cooper).htm
"An estimated 2 million people in the United States use wheelchairs."
http://www.fda.gov/bbs/topics/NEWS/2003/NEW00933.html
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2. How many people in the U.S. use a manual wheelchair (instead of a power)?
Trends and Issues in Wheeled Mobility Technologies:
http://www.ap.buffalo.edu/idea/space%20workshop/Papers/WEB%20-%20Trends_Iss_WC%20(Cooper).htm
Table 1. Current manual wheelchair usage by category:
Depot 600,000
Lightweight 400,000
Ultra-Lightweight 200,000
Bariatric 50,000
Standing 5,000
Specialized 100,000
Total: 1,355,000
Table 2. Current electric powered wheelchair usage and trending.
Lightweight Indoor Use 50,000
Indoor Use and Light Outdoor Use 100,000
Active Indoor and Outdoor Use 100,000
Electric Powered Scooter 350,000
Bariatric 10,000
Standing 5,000
PAPAW 5,000
Specialized Seating 50,000
Total 670,000
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3. Of the people that use a manual wheelchair, how many of them are
coded as a K-5? (this is a custom, lightweight chair.. may be
impossible to find)
Trends and Issues in Wheeled Mobility Technologies:
[see Tables 1 & 2]
http://www.ap.buffalo.edu/idea/space%20workshop/Papers/WEB%20-%20Trends_Iss_WC%20(Cooper).htm
Lightweight 400,000
(Designed for individuals who are inactive and who do not require
specialized seating)
Ultra-Lightweight 200,000
(Designed for individuals who independently propel or require features
to accommodate their disability.)
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4. What are the funding sources for the K-5 chair?
Sources of Funding for Wheelchairs:
http://www.wheelchairnet.org/WCN_ProdServ/Funding/fundingsources.html
K0005 = Custom Ultra-lightweight Manual Wheelchair
Medicare:
"All K0004 (the code for a lightweight wheelchair which means that it
weighs less than 36 lbs.) wheelchairs and scooters (note: these
regulations can vary by region) must be authorized by a physician
specialist like a Physiatrist, a neurologist, a rheumatologist , an
orthopedic surgeon or a cardiologist. It is very important to have a
strong letter of justification and a supporting evaluation to justify
the purchase of any lightweight or custom ultralightweight manual
(K0005) wheelchair or any power wheelchair or scooter."
http://www.wheelchairnet.org/WCN_ProdServ/Funding/funding.html#anchor2223616
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5. How is it divided up?
(I.E. what percentage is Medicare v. Medicaid v. Managed Care v. Private Pay?)
Percentages are nearly impossible to come up with, given the wide
variety of plans in each state, but the Wheelchair.net gives a hunk of
information regarding funding, hopefully it will help.
"Medicare pays 80% of the cost of a wheelchair and either you or your
secondary insurance pays the other 20%."
http://www.wheelchairnet.org/WCN_ProdServ/Funding/funding.html#anchor2223616
Description of the Device and Its Market
PRIVATE PAYMENT SOURCES
"An estimated 90 to 95 percent of all wheelchair purchases are at
least partially funded by third parties (Government or private
insurers); only 5 percent are paid totally by the user (19). Over half
of wheelchair purchases are at least partially paid for by Government
sources including Medicaid, Medicare, and the VA, In particular, in
1976, 11 percent were reportedly paid for by the VA (17). (See ch. 3
for a fuller discussion of the Government?s role as a purchaser of
wheelchairs. )"
Private Insurance
"To illustrate private insurance coverage for wheelchairs, the authors
contacted Blue Cross of Massachusetts, the largest private insurer in
the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Insurance coverage for rental or
purchase of wheelchairs depends on whether the policy covers durable
medical equipment. If it does, reimbursement is usually for 80 percent
of the reasonable charge, using a formula similar to that used by
Medicare."
"Only those wheelchairs and accessories that are prescribed by a
physician are covered (11). Blue Cross pays for the least costly
wheelchair that meets the user?s physical needs. For a new, more
costly model of a wheelchair to be covered, it must have a unique
feature of medical benefit not available on a less costly model."
http://www.wws.princeton.edu/cgi-bin/byteserv.prl/~ota/disk3/1984/8418/841804.PDF
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Additional Links of Interest:
Industry Profile:
"Manual wheelchair propulsion has a major impact on social life of the
user as it determines to a great extent the range of environments in
which the user can move in. At the same time many hygienic, safety and
security issues are related to manual wheelchair propulsion. There are
several problems associated with the current propulsion system. These
are highlighted below. Most of these problems apply to all types of
propulsion systems being used today, though some of them may be
specific to some propulsion system."
http://cosmos.ot.buffalo.edu/t2rerc/programs/demandpull/mobility/forum-data/data-propulsion1.html
Medline Plus Links:
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/assistivedevices.html
I hope these stats are what you are looking for. If not, or if you
have any questions, *please* post a clarification request before
closing/rating my answer and I'll be happy to reply.
Thank you,
hummer
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