There is a large provider of power chairs and scooters that advertises on TV that you can get a power chair for free: Medicare will pay for it, they say . My dad was scammed by this large company. Here is a quote from their brochure: "You won't have to do a thing. We're experts in this area and 96% of the claims we submit are approved." (The bolding is their's, not mine)
Problem is, their business is going downhill because medicare has been clamping down on fraud, thus putting them nearly out of business. They had to pull out of the lucrative Houston market because, in that market, fraudulent claims don't get payed.
Their basic business model has several parts. One part is well-described in articles like this. This is classic Medicare fraud, delivering ultra high profit products to people who do not qualify for them. For medicare purposes, a typical power chair purchased by the company for $800-$1000 is sold for $8400 or so. A few of these go to people who need them. In 2004, medicare paid eight claims out of 500 submitted by the company in the Houston market. So the company pulled out of the Houston market. Why do business where you can't get away with it?
When my dad needed a power chair, he unfortunately picked The Scooter Store as a vendor. He was in dire need, so paid cash to expedite the order, having been promised that Medicare would reimburse him. So they upsold him. Instead of delivering the standard duty model (which was plenty big enough for his 115 lb stature) they delivered a heavy duty model, incorrectly stating that he'd get longer range (just the opposite is true). Medicare will not cover a heavy duty chair for a light duty person, understandably. But the Scooter store got its money up front.
My dad passed away in November, leaving this essentially unused power chair to be disposed of. Although it had only one month's use on it, it was worth just a few hundred dollars, because everyone knows you can get one "for free". A local vendor said, "Heck I can buy a brand new one from my supplier for $800." After a long, difficult negotiation, The Scooter Store took back the chair and provided a partial refund.
Now, a month later, a creative bill has arrived at my father's address. They are billing for the full retail amount again. They have have long since picked up the chair. So I am reporting this to the FBI, to senators Corker, Kohl, and Blumenthal, etc.
I'll let you know how things go. But if you or a loved one needs a power chair, don't get involved with The Scooter Scam.
The Scooter Scam 
Re: The Scooter Scam
