I was hoping to have written this post last week, so that you might have more time to help out, but life got in the way! This is a VERY important post, especially to those of you who rely on Medicare to secure AAC devices. Specifically this is related to patients with ALS, Cerebral Palsy, Muscular Dystrophy, Rett Syndrome,spinal cord injuries, spinal muscular atrophy and other impairments and their ability to retain and receive Speech Generation Devices (SGD).
As of September 1, Medicare will be changing the rules and will not allow patients to receive this devices to "unlock" them. Thereby, denying individuals the ability to communicate with their families and other individuals via email, text, video chat, etc... Even though the unlock fee is not paid by Medicare, they will no longer allow individuals to purchase devices that this could be done on.
Medicare has also been denying Eye Gaze devices for those individuals whose only means of access if via an eye gaze system. Many of these cases have 2 medical professionals certifying the need for an eye gaze system and it is still denied. The backlog of appeals is years long and many patients are being denied the ability to communicate.
Please take a moment and go to this website - Center for Medical Advocacy, fill in your zip code, and the short form that follows to contact your representatives and urge them to sign a petition to stop these rule changes! It takes just 2-3 minutes. You only have until August 27, so please do it right away!
Patrick
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This is a very insightful article on the recent AAC/Medicare changes! It’s great to see how policy updates are shaping healthcare delivery and patient access. Understanding these changes is especially important for students and professionals in the healthcare field. For those working on research or coursework related to these topics, resources like medical science assignment help can be invaluable. They not only assist in grasping complex healthcare policies but also provide guidance on how such changes impact clinical practice and patient outcomes.
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