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Today is America Recycles Day. Recycling assistive technology
is one way to help make community living possible for more people.
By Rob Groenendaal, ACL Assistive Technology Program Manager,
and Shantol Coleman, ACL Program Analyst
Assistive technology (AT) and durable medical equipment (DME)
encompass a broad range of devices including home hospital beds, hearing
aids, communication devices, wheelchair ramps or lifts, and software. These
devices play a critical role in helping many older adults and individuals
with disabilities achieve educational and career goals, avoid social
isolation, and stay out of nursing homes.
Unfortunately, cost and insurance barriers can prevent many
people from obtaining devices that could improve their lives.
 Mark is one of many who faced
this challenge. He is a United States Marine Corps veteran living with
back and spinal cord damage. He requires both standard and power
wheelchairs to participate fully in his community. However, his insurance
repeatedly denied his claims for a power chair, which typically cost
thousands of dollars.
This is where recycling comes in. Across the country, Assistive Technology Act programs funded
by ACL are reusing, refurbishing, and recycling donated AT and DME
devices so that older adults and people with disabilities can get tools
and technology that would otherwise be out of reach.
When Mark started looking for resources, he found Project
MEND, a San Antonio-based program that partners with the Texas AT Act program.
Project MEND is one of a growing number
of initiatives to collect, sanitize, repair, refurbish, test, and
distribute donated AT and DME devices. With support from the Texas
Veterans Commission, Project MEND has developed a particular focus on
helping veterans like Mark obtain AT and DME.
Project MEND provided Mark with a professionally refurbished
power chair modified to fit his specifications. The power chair has made
it possible for Mark to be more active in his community and attend church
again.
“It’s made a huge impact in my quality of life," Mark
says. "I’m very blessed.”
Programs like Project MEND rely primarily on donations. If
you are interested in donating or receiving a used AT or DME device,
check out the directory of AT reuse programs developed
by the Pass It On
Center.
AT and DME reuse programs not only promote independence and
inclusion for older adults and people with disabilities, they can also
save money for taxpayer-funded state and federal healthcare programs.
For example, the Kansas and Oklahoma AT Programs have formed
partnerships with their State Medicaid Agencies to refurbish and reassign
devices. Through these partnerships, both privately donated and
Medicaid-purchased devices that are no longer being used can be
sanitized, refurbished, and provided to other eligible state residents
free of charge. In Kansas, this partnership has brought in over 12,000
DME donations worth over $13.6 million dollars since 2002. An analysis of
data from 2017 and 2018 found that each dollar spent on the program
allowed Kansans to receive $2.86 worth of DME. In Oklahoma, the
partnership has refurbished and reassigned over 5,000 devices saving
SoonerCare, the state’s Medicaid program, over $1.3 million since 2012.
AT reuse is just one of the four key state-level activities
provided by ACL's AT Act program network. These programs can also help
you find the right device or technology for your needs and can help you
finance device purchases. And, they hit the first of the famous
"three Rs" (reduce, reuse, and recycle), with device loans that
help prevent unnecessary purchases and allow you to "try before you
buy."
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