In a recent congressional investigation, the people who answer Medicare’s telephone help line gave inaccurate responses to questions a third of the time. The beneficiary help line is designed to provide assistance for Medicare recipients in understanding the complex Medicare policies. During the study the Customer Service Representatives gave inaccurate answers 29% of the time and accurate answers 61% of the time. The other 10% of the calls were either transferred to other Medicare contractors who were closed or were inadvertently disconnected.
Perhaps the most embarrassing gaffe concerned a question about power wheelchairs. Confusing “trunk strength” - the term used by Medicare to mean upper body strength - with the size of a car trunk, one operator “incorrectly explained that Medicare would only cover a power wheelchair if a beneficiary had adequate space to put it in the trunk of his car,” GAO said.
The report stated that Medicare's customer service people spend two weeks in a classroom to train for the job.
Aeratech Home Medical has been working with the Medicare policy manual on DME equipment for over 5 years now. If you have questions regarding medical equipment, we will be happy to try to help you understand the issues for coverage of the equipment under your insurance policy.
