Well, I think I'm screwed. This has been a learning experience and one that is going to probably take five years to correct. As some of you might remember I was up for a new power chair and being forced to jump through all the hoops, etc. I was being steered ok, pretty much told, you'll be getting a Quantum Q6 Edge 2.0. Don't all applaud at once.
Then the word came back that my chair was denied by insurance. So, I contacted the guy I'd been dealing with on getting the chair and asked him about appealing the denial. He said no, it wasn't really worth it. Bottom line without going into everything, I'm staying at a care center right now due to some wounds I have. Because of that, insurance basically denied the chair. This guy I worked with said we'd have to wait until I had a discharge date to start the whole process over again. I asked to speak to one of the physical therapists who were also involved at the "wheelchair fitting" thing I had to go through. So this PT lady calls me and she basically told me the same thing. I thought, this is BS, what do these people care. If I DON'T appeal it then they all get paid a 2nd time when I DO get discharged and the insurance WILL approve the chair. So they have basically NO incentive to encourage me to appeal the denial. So, I went ahead with the appeal on my own! I got my doctor to change my orders so I could get up more (was on bedrest), had my doctor write a letter on my behalf, had like six other people right letters on my behalf. I wrote a three page letter myself. The appeal was to be decided by a human services judge via teleconference between me and the other side/insurance. The hearing/teleconference was scheduled for a Monday, the Friday before the hearing, I got a letter saying the insurance had changed their mind and were now going to pay for the chair. And, they were paying for it EXACTLY as it was spec'd out in the original preapproval request, including the seat elevation feature which I was told by these people at the wheelchair fitting would NEVER be approved even if the chair was approved.
They said they we can request it but they never usually consider it medically necessary. I think I surprised the hell out of the guy who said no, don't bother appealing the denial when I emailed him and asked him if he got a copy of the letter saying I had appealed the denial and the insurance was now paying for the insurance. Especially, since he told me there was no way it was worth appealing.
Anyway, fast forward about a month, the chair should be here by now. I can't get a hold my guy.
He's not responding to my emails. I finally call him only to find he's been out on medical leave and will be for a couple of more weeks. I call this number he left on his voice mail to check on the status of my chair. Turns out the chair is here (at the dealers office). It's probably been there for who knows how long. So, I make arrangements for them to deliver it and this guy brings it out and makes a couple of adjustments I ask him to make to the arm rests, etc. I was in bed when he showed up so I couldn't even get IN the chair to properly try it out while he was here. So while he's making the adjustments I ask him if the programmer is in this big cardboard box of stuff. He looks and says, "ah no...I don't see a programmer." Now, I know..I read what you guys had to say about the absence of a "real"programmer, etc. After talking to this guy I was working with and be very insistent, he agreed to add the programmer that was listed on the order form for the chair. I'd have to pay for it of pocket but he agreed he'd order it for me as he agreed that he believed I was competent enough to not make any incredibly stupid or dangerous changes. So anyway, the guy looks and nope, there's NO programmer in the box. I told the guy there is SUPPOSED to be a programmer WITH the chair as one was ORDERED WITH THE CHAIR. I told him one was SPECIFICALLY ordered. The guy starts going into the usual..."well they don't usually sell the programmers because..." I said, yes, I know and I know why but this was specifically discussed and I was TOLD that I would be getting the programmer WITH the chair. He said, well you'll have to talk to "so and so" when he gets back. Great.
Question if anyone knows, I found this package among the box of "stuff"..owner's manual, charger, etc. It's a small plastic bag with a label that says, "ELE139125" ELECTRONIC ASSY.SERVICE BOARD. W/HARNESS & POUCH QTY:1. In the plastic bag is a small draw string pouch with Quantum on it. Inside are these two cables...that I have NO idea what they are for. There is one that is almost two fee long. On one end it is split and it has a two large alligator clips with red and black rubber/vinyl boots. On the other end is a silver three pin round connector. The other cable in the pouch is a little over four feet long. On one end is a silver, three pin, round connector that looks like the mate to the silver, round, 3 pin connector on the end of the other cable. On the other end of this 2nd cable is pig tail with two, small, rectangular, white, two pin, push-on connectors of some sort. In the MIDDLE of that 2nd cable is what appears to be about a four inch long, inch wide, black, plastic switch of some kind. It's got two arrows that face either end of the switch/cable and they depress slightly if you push on them. There are two small LEDs on one end of the switch and there is a 10 amp blade style fuse plugged into the face of the switch toward the other end. Does anyone have any idea what this is for. I did a search on the number on the label and I came up with this.
https://www.southwestmedical.com/replac ... rs-package Apparently this wiring harness or whatever it is, goes for about $70. Is it just a spare part or something? The thing that has me most curious is the switch and the LED lights. If I had to GUESS, I'd say it's maybe a diagnostic cable of some sort. Maybe something that can plug into one of the seating system components or into the main controller box and with the switch maybe run the unit(s) up and down or in/out. Perhaps it can be powered directly from the battery given the alligator clips circumventing the need to use the joystick controller. Again, just guessing. If anyone knows for sure please let me know, I'm curious.
I haven't had much time to test out the chair yet. The little bit I have, I can see that it needs programming changes already. Instead of pushing the joystick forward and it being proportional whereby the further and faster you push it forward the faster it goes towards the top speed of whatever driving profile you are in. This thing.. .you push it all the way forward and the chair SITS THERE FOR A SECOND OR TWO and THEN takes off!? Same thing with revere, turning etc. That, to me seems unpredictable and dangerous. When I push the joystick forward, I want it to start moving immediately and in proportion to how far and how fast I have moved the joystick. NOT just sit there and THEN decide to go. It's like they've programmed in some sort of delay or something. That's gotta change. I REALLY wish I would have read and taken seriously Goose's advice from an earlier post. I was attempting to figure this whole thing out and before I knew it, this guy is ordering the chair. I guess I really didn't think about the concept of not signing for a chair I wasn't completely happy with and that I knew had features (like 22NF batteries) that were going to be completely inappropriate for my needs. I guess I'd hoped this guy I was working with was going to finally listen and we'd get things hashed out before he went and ordered the damn thing. BIG mistake on my end
and one, like I said, I'll be paying for for the next five years or so. I'm in a care center now but that's going to change. Once I get out and about, is when I'm really going to feel the inadequacies of the chair in terms of range and so on. I'm just hoping I can get even the dealer level programmer (like I'm supposed to) so I can at least maybe make SOME changes to this thing. I don't want to have to call them for every little tiny tweak that is needed. I have my doubts though which REALLY ticks me off. Terribly sorry for the novel here, I just waned to give an update to what's transpired since my last post on this subject. Thank you to Goose and everyone who's given me information on this "chair". I just wished I'd pay more attention to some of it, sooner.
