My friend FINALLY got her electric wheelchair fixed!

The motor that let her raise and lowers the sear of her wheelchair stopped working two months ago and the idiots at the local place that sells various accessibility and mobility stuff, called Healthcare Accessories, kept claiming that Minnesota Medical Assistance didn't cover "nonessential" electric wheelchair repairs. I thought it was a load of crap, probably they were trying to get out of doing it because MNMA wouldn't allow price gouging. I suggested that she call her country social worker and have her look into it, and she agreed that the claim was BS, and after two months of the social worker and my friend's parents arguing with the place and threatening legal action the place gave in. What a bunch of assholes!

because your friend is lazy and irresponsible dontcha know..:sarcasm:
Isn't that the only reason people have problems with health care? :grr:

Same fucking BS logic :puke:

a list is at

http://www.ilru.org

As I recall, only a few rural counties mostly in western and southern MN aren't covered. We deal with this kind of crap on a daily basis (I am in the process of moving from the center out here to one in CA).

demands that I buy replacement batteries with cash. They refuse to accept insurance for battery replacements because insurance doesn't pay them enough.

I haven't tried to use insurance for any repairs yet. Thankfully I haven't had any repairs that weren't under warranty. But I'm sure that when I do I'll encounter the same thing. It is all about the amount of money they can charge you. :(

Who the fuck are they to say what feature is or is not essential? For me, because of horrible back pain, the ability to recline the seat is essential. If the seat became broken and could not recline and they refused to fix this because it was non-essential I'd be totally screwed. x(

And the seat height adjustment is very much essential so that she can work. She HATES feeling "useless", so having a job is essential for her mental health, especially after what she has went through.

are 6 inches too low or too high for the desk they're at. Then they'll find out how essential that height adjustment is. Yes, if she is still able to work then that height adjustment is essential, and I'm sure those 2 months without it were very difficult.

She and I work for the same non-profit employment company for the disabled that contracts us clients out to different sites in the community. We were both working at the same site (the kitchen of a preschool run by the YWCA, which is how I met her in the first place) until her wheelchair broke, and she had been stuck at the main office since then doing tedious, boring tasks normally done by the lower-functioning clients, like shredding paper, and it's been driving her CRAZY, because she's NOT the kind of person who do such tedious stuff and stay sane, she's a very extroverted, wild, "where's" the PARTY!?!", touchy-feely, lovey-dovey kind of person.