Contact:
Lynn Gonzales
Media Relations
The SCOOTER Store
(830)626-4064
Press Releases
The SCOOTER Store Reduces Workforce By 200 People
Result Of Medicare Reimbursement Cuts
New Braunfels, TX, December 1, 2006
Statement by Doug Harrison
Founder and CEO of The SCOOTER Store
I regret to announce that The SCOOTER Store has been forced to reduce its workforce by 200 people due to Medicare's flawed decision to significantly cut reimbursement fees for power wheelchairs (28%) and scooters (38%). Medicare claims the cuts are in response to utilization spiraling out of control. The reality is that utilization of the Medicare power mobility benefit has dropped almost 30% since 2003 and is 10% (12,000 units per year) below Medicare's own estimate of appropriate utilization. Additionally, Medicare's methodology for calculating the price cut still incorporates numerous errors and does not reflect today's market price for power mobility devices.
The SCOOTER Store is not immune to the financial pressures that Medicare's significant cuts inflict on our operation, as well as on other suppliers and manufacturers around the country. Before being forced to take this drastic action of eliminating jobs, we took many other steps to reduce costs. In the end, however, we still found it necessary to reduce the workforce so that The SCOOTER Store can continue operating and providing mobility equipment to seniors and people living with disabilities who depend on us to improve their quality of life.
Layoffs impact families and communities. It pains me that 200 men and women and their families are being negatively impacted largely because the government doesn't have a system to accurately determine what the proper Medicare pricing should be for power wheelchairs and scooters. Our dedicated employees, as well as the Medicare beneficiaries who will also be hurt by these cuts, deserve that much from Washington.
We hope and pray that Medicare (The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services - CMS) recognizes that The SCOOTER Store and the entire mobility industry is willing to work with them, but what we expect in return are regulations and policies based on accurate data and information that will not hurt the beneficiaries we are both committed to serve.
Many members of Congress have not only agreed with us, but have also urged CMS in meetings, letters and phone calls to adjust the fee schedule or delay implementation until a more accurate payment formula could be developed. Unfortunately, the November 15 implementation date arrived, and despite some very slight adjustments, the fees were still drastically reduced to unrealistic levels. While CMS has verbally committed to fixing these errors, the power mobility industry has yet to see any movement. We remain optimistic that these changes will provide some relief in the near future.
The SCOOTER Store will carry on the fight to protect the Medicare mobility benefit from further dismantling and cuts. Already, we are concerned that seniors, and people living with disabilities, particularly in rural areas across the country, won't have access to wheelchairs and scooters. In the coming weeks, we will continue to work with CMS, urging that all remaining errors in the payment formula be corrected. We will also ask Congress to help achieve this outcome as quickly as possible.
Our employees have built The SCOOTER Store into the nation's leading provider of mobility equipment. With their hard work, seniors and people living with disabilities all over America are more independent today, and increased mobility has enriched their lives. Our collective efforts have SAVED Medicare billions of dollars by allowing our customers to live safer, live longer, and stay at home instead of costly nursing homes. I will always be grateful for our employees' countless contributions to our company's mission, and deeply regret that we have been forced to make these reductions in the workforce.
About The SCOOTER Store
Since 1991, The SCOOTER Store has helped provide freedom and independence to more than 350,000 people with limited mobility. The SCOOTER Store offers a full line of durable medical equipment, including power wheelchairs and scooters, lifts, ramps and accessories in all 48 contiguous states plus Puerto Rico. The SCOOTER Store has worked with more than 110,000 physicians, providing expertise and quality service to their patients, and is accredited by the Accreditation Commission for Health Care.
