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Choices for Increased Mobility Act of 2025
To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to clarify payment rules for manual wheelchairs under part B of the Medicare program.
Summary
The bill amends Medicare Part B to require separate billing codes for ultralightweight manual wheelchairs based on their construction materials. Starting January 1, 2026, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services must establish distinct billing codes for ultralightweight wheelchairs with titanium or carbon fiber bases and separate codes for those without such materials. Under the new system, Medicare will pay the standard rate for these wheelchairs to suppliers, but suppliers may charge beneficiaries the difference between Medicare's payment amount and the supplier's actual charge for the wheelchair. Suppliers must provide beneficiaries with advance notice about potential out-of-pocket costs before purchase or rental of the wheelchair. This system allows Medicare beneficiaries to access premium ultralightweight wheelchairs while making cost-sharing arrangements transparent between Medicare, suppliers, and patients.
AI-generated plain-language summary of the bill text — neutral, and may be imperfect. See the full text below for the exact wording.
Sponsor (1)
1 cosponsor
- Sen. Duckworth, Tammy [D-IL] (D-IL)
Actions (2)
- Jan 24, 2025 Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance. · senate
- Jan 24, 2025 Introduced in Senate
Similar bills (6)
Bills with similar text or summary — includes reintroductions across Congresses. Ranked by semantic similarity of the bill text (computed locally); a neutral discovery aid, not a claim the bills are duplicates.
Full text
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
January 24, 2025
Mrs. Blackburn (for herself and Ms. Duckworth) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance
A BILL
To amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to clarify payment rules for manual wheelchairs under part B of the Medicare program.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the “Choices for Increased Mobility Act of 2025”.
SEC. 2. SPECIAL RULES RELATED TO TREATMENT OF CERTAIN MANUAL WHEELCHAIRS UNDER THE MEDICARE PROGRAM.
Section 1834(a) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395m(a)) is amended by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
“(23) Special rules related to treatment of certain manual wheelchairs.—
“(A) Requirement to establish separate hcpcs codes for certain manual wheelchairs.—With respect to ultralightweight manual wheelchairs payable under this subsection furnished on or after January 1, 2026, the Secretary shall establish two or more HCPCS codes, as determined appropriate by the Secretary, for the base of such a wheelchair depending on the construction material used in such base (with 1 or more such codes for such a base with titanium or carbon fiber construction material and 1 or more such codes for such a base without such materials).
“(B) Payment and beneficiary protections.—
“(i) Payment.—On or after January 1, 2026, in the case where an individual purchases or rents from a supplier an ultralightweight manual wheelchair that has titanium or carbon fiber construction material used in the base of such wheelchair, payment to the supplier shall be made in the frequency and amount as would otherwise be made under this subsection (as described in paragraph (1)(A)) for such wheelchair.
“(ii) Beneficiary charges.—The supplier may charge the individual the difference between the payment amount described in clause
(i) for such wheelchair and the supplier’s actual charge for such wheelchair.
“(iii) Beneficiary protections.—In order to inform an individual of their potential financial liability under clause (ii), the Secretary may require a supplier to issue a notice to the individual (in a form and manner determined by the Secretary) prior to the purchase or rent of such ultralightweight manual wheelchair by such individual.”. <all>
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