Will Medicare Pay for Adjustable Beds?

For hundreds of thousands of aging Baby Boomers and others who may be younger but suffering from debilitating physical disabilities, “Will Medicare pay for adjustable beds?” is the million dollar question.

Adjustable beds have long been valued in the medical industry for the widespread therapeutic benefits of their use by both people who are healthy and those with diagnosed medical ailments. The ability to adjust sleeping positions with the touch of a remote control allows the user to find the perfect setting to ease muscle cramps, pain, circulation problems, acid reflux, respiratory conditions, back pain and a myriad other conditions.

Given these documented benefits to the use of adjustable beds, and the fact that Medicare is the federally funded medical insurance program for senior citizens and those people with permanent physical disabilities, it seems only logical that the two would co-mingle. After all, adjustable beds provide legitimate assistance to people who badly need it.

But that wouldn’t be the case. Times are tough for Medicare and demands on the system are far exceeding the funding parameters that are in place. With the fiscal strain only expected to grow, it isn’t likely that Medicare will reverse its view of adjustable beds anytime soon.

In almost all cases, Medicare will not cover the purchase, lease or rental of an adjustable bed. Medicare will, however, cover the cost of a full-sized hospital bed in cases of documented need. While that may be an acceptable option for some people – especially with very severe symptoms – it is not a practical or functional alternative for most. In addition, hospital beds simply will not fit in a large number of residential settings, a fact that makes smaller, sleeker and fashionable adjustable beds a superior choice.

Even so, there’s no real point in trying to figure out why the federal government does what it does. That does not mean that there is no point in filing an adjustable bed claim with Medicare to see if it floats. There will be some cases where the cost will be approved. In the majority of cases where it will not be approved, this is an important first step in the event the buyer has personal insurance, on top of Medicare, that may approve the purchase of an adjustable bed.

That may not be settling for many people who will not have that option and must instead rely on Medicare benefits for all of their medical needs. Unfortunately, the program does not leave many options for people in this position who could find their conditions eased or improved with the regular use of an adjustable bed.