brain-damaged primitive brings up scooters

[franksolich]

http://www.democraticunderground.com/10021382547

Oh my.

I for one hope this means the coming demise of those damned vehicles inside large stores; they're a peril to those of us in the vast majority walking around on our own two feet.  Also, they're just a means for some to show off--"look at me, look at me, I'm disabled, I'm special, and I get to use this scooter to run over you all, ha ha ha....."

I loathe the damned things, and the "entitled" sitting in them, usually spilling way over the sides.

Although I remain curious why it's an issue of concern for the brain-damaged primitive.

DainBramaged (35,327 posts)  Thu Sep 20, 2012, 08:25 AM

Scooter Store cuts 220 workers

Changes in claims-processing procedures and reductions in reimbursement amounts are behind the cuts, Zipp said.

The latest cuts come less than three weeks after the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) implemented a three-year demonstration program that requires durable medical equipment providers get “prior authorization” from Medicare before patients living in any of seven states receive a scooter or power wheelchair.

Those states are Texas, California, Illinois, Michigan, New York, North Carolina and Florida. The states have “high populations of fraud- and error-prone providers,” CMS said in a statement last month. The program eventually could be rolled out in all states.

“CMS believes this demonstration will lead to reductions in improper payments for mobility devices, which will help ensure the sustainability of the Medicare Trust Funds,” the statement added.

http://www.mysanantonio.com/business/article/More-layoffs-at-The-Scooter-Store-3874803.php

This isn't about 220 jobs, this is about a company that sold scooters at inflated prices to the elderly and charged Medicare exorbitant prices.

The Scooter Store now gets reimbursed over a 13-month period as opposed to all up front. This halved their income since 2009.

Viva_La_Revolution (26,026 posts)  Thu Sep 20, 2012, 08:34 AM

1. once gram got that damn scooter, she stopped walking and pretty soon she couldn't.

I'm convinced they're oversold by at least 75%.

physioex (6,378 posts)  Thu Sep 20, 2012, 09:41 AM

2. And at the Supermarket....

They get way overused.

global1 (9,692 posts)  Thu Sep 20, 2012, 09:47 AM

3. The Scooter Store Is An Oportunist Scam.....

They saw a way to take advantage of the reimbursement situation and did. Now that CMS has caught on and is clamping down they are in trouble. I would keep and eye on the Scooter Store in the future. They could be targeted for fraud and abuse and will probably be fined out of existence.

DainBramaged (35,327 posts)  Thu Sep 20, 2012, 06:25 PM

4. Somehow they find out people on disability and pummel them with ads and junk mail and don't forget that free gift.....

The Scooter Store, Chinese made just for the masses. If you go to the website they tell you NOTHING about the products they sell.

Oh.

So that's why it's of interest to the brain-damaged primitive.

They're made by yellow people.

There's a strong streak of racism running through Skins's island; the primitives don't like yellow people.

[Chris_]

global1 (9,692 posts)  Thu Sep 20, 2012, 09:47 AM

3. The Scooter Store Is An Oportunist Scam.....

They saw a way to take advantage of the reimbursement situation and did. Now that CMS has caught on and is clamping down they are in trouble. I would keep and eye on the Scooter Store in the future. They could be targeted for fraud and abuse and will probably be fined out of existence.

Imagine that, someone abusing a government program.  What a surprise.

[GOBUCKS]

That reminds me of that great 80s TV comedy, "SCTV".

The SCTV "station owner", Guy Cabellero, was able-bodied but was always in a wheelchair.

He said it got him more respect.

[obumazombie]

They are good for one thing...

[youtube=425,350]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=csuZHyW-iGI[/youtube]

[franksolich]

He said it got him more respect.

Not from me, it wouldn't.

You'd be surprised what hazards those things pose to people who can't hear.

And the bitch is, if I got run over by one because I wasn't aware it was coming, it'd be my fault, not getting out of the way of a poor "disabled" "handicapped" person.

It really pisses me off, these tubs of lard spilling over like melting butter, who could probably use some exercise walking.

[diesel driver]

Scooters aren't the only thing "reimbursed by Medicare" at exorbitant prices. 

My mother-in-law and wife recently went to a medical equipment store to get mil a wheelchair (usual kind, no motor).
Cost of the chair (brand new) was about $200.
We paid $120 ($10/month), Medicare paid OVER $800!!!!
This is PER Medicare's OWN pricing guidelines!
WTH!!!!!

[JohnnyReb]

"...often at no cost to you."...that's the line in the TV ads that always pisses me off. Well, it's going to cost somebody a lot.

[vesta111]

Not from me, it wouldn't.

You'd be surprised what hazards those things pose to people who can't hear.

And the bitch is, if I got run over by one because I wasn't aware it was coming, it'd be my fault, not getting out of the way of a poor "disabled" "handicapped" person.

It really pisses me off, these tubs of lard spilling over like melting butter, who could probably use some exercise walking.

You bring up a good point here, the fact that the handicapped become invisible to others. 

3 times in my life I became one of these invisible people -----years apart but a lesson.      Both knees crushed in accidents and a tumor removed from a shin bone.   

With a broken leg or knee it is not a good thing to try walking the floors of a mall or grocery store.   Our Walmart had those scooters that allowed shoppers to move about as does the Mall have both scooters and wheel chairs. Hell Accidents happen to both the very young and very old, the in between and not every one at any age is in shape to walk to buy necessity's.

I did notice that when in a wheel chair you become a cellophane person, no one looks at you they go out of their way to ignore you.    Those Scooters are the same but the person controlling them must do so as they would driving a car, riding a bicycle or skate board.  Pedestrians have the right of way.

Years of training children to not look or stare at the handicapped gives way to adults that look right through them and not acknowledge their existence.   

More people in wheel chairs or on the scooters are hurt by people that ignore them then people being run down by them.  These scooters are a life saver for those that cannot walk or have limited ability to do so.

Frank being deaf is no excuse to not scan your surroundings, you do need to know what is behind you as well as what is in front of you.

Now my daughter is on Oxygen, she is No.11 on the Boston Liver transplant list.   Without the Scooters she would have no way to shop, or to even get out of the house to get fresh air and walk her dog.  Her life is limited to only going places that have the scooters, the effort to wheel a wheel chair would cause her to use up too much Oxygen, she has a bit of the quality of life and the Scooters give it to her.

Actually I am surprised that You with a minor handicap would begruge those with Major ones, Yes I say Minor as you can still move about, drive a car, watch TV wth CC and live a good life.     Just fancy the people in wheel chairs and on scooters that need help to use the bathroom, take a shower or reach up to a cabinet to get a can of cat food to feed their pet.  You can make your bed, clean your house wash your windows and at any time head out to the local diner or bar.   

That tub of lard may have only weighed 140 pounds when the incident occured.  Being unable to move about puts weight on people and ---------Oh forget it, I see you cannot understand.

[franksolich]

Actually I am surprised that You with a minor handicap would begruge those with Major ones,

vesta dear, don't get yourself placed on my shit list.

There is nothing, absolutely nothing, "minor" about being deaf.

[GOBUCKS]

vesta dear, don't get yourself placed on my shit list.

There is nothing, absolutely nothing, "minor" about being deaf.

DUmmy vestanumbers has always been nothing but an obnoxious, brain-dead nuisance, but I'm curious.

If that ignorant, insulting post doesn't get her on your shit list, what would?

[Wineslob]

vesta dear, don't get yourself placed on my shit list.

There is nothing, absolutely nothing, "minor" about being deaf.

Frank, pay no attention. She isn't worth it. Ignorance is.............................not bliss in this case.

Vesta, think before you open your trap.


I agree that the scooters are over-used. I see more "welfare" mommas using the things because, IMO, they are lazy pigs that have gotten themselves so fat off the public pigs trough, they have trouble walking.

[Karin]

"...often at no cost to you."...that's the line in the TV ads that always pisses me off. Well, it's going to cost somebody a lot.

JohnnyReb, that drives me crazy too!  That one geezer with the really gravelly voice, sounding like he's been a four-packer for forty years, says, "at absolutely no cost to ME."  


BTW, I think the ones at Walmart are way over-used, too.  I sometimes see whole families hog them up, clogging up aisles, going backwards, causing them to go BEEP BEEP BEEP.  Pondering every can of creamed corn on display. 

[Ballygrl]

I tried to get 1 for my Mom and The Scooter Store said since she's not on oxygen yet she didn't qualify.

[vesta111]

vesta dear, don't get yourself placed on my shit list.

There is nothing, absolutely nothing, "minor" about being deaf.

Dear Frank, I know that your disability is a problem.  

You Frank are are a survivor of a disability that many of our returning sholders face from rockets bursting so close they cause them to become deaf.    They have allways had a life of sound, our men return to the our country just as deaf as you are.    They have no time to adjust to the condition or to learn to compensate for their loss.

So put me on your shit list, I care about about our men and women that find themselves in the same place of you but  ----living on the streets.  You Sir were born this way, others became the same way by serving our Nation.

A man with a limp may have been born this way, a man with a limp may have paid his price to the to the American public.

Sorry I cannot go with the disabled at birth, I have to honor and respect the disabled that have given up a normal life to Serve our Country.

Darn
Frank cannot you see the veterens coming home in worse shape then yourself.    Some as deaf as you or even worse then you in a scooter in a store,  You had no choice to be born deaf but those that come home alive did, they gave their all for America.

How do You know the man or woman in a scooter did not save the lives of their group in far away places with strange sounding names.      

[Gina]

When I was pregnant and on bedrest I had to use one at Costco because I was so weak.  I detested it and just finally stopped going to Costco. 

I disagree with this big time

That tub of lard may have only weighed 140 pounds when the incident occured.  Being unable to move about puts weight on people and ---------

You do not become a tub of lard from 140lbs by just not being able to walk.  You are shoveling tubs of lard into your gaping mouth to get that big.  Don't tell me someone gets fat because they can't walk.  That's BS.  Monitor your damn eating and you will not grow to be a fat tub of lard.

[franksolich]

vesta111, dear, you're wanted in the Fight Club forum.

Please attend to.

Don't worry; franksolich doesn't bite.

franksolich just wants to know.

[vesta111]

When I was pregnant and on bedrest I had to use one at Costco because I was so weak.  I detested it and just finally stopped going to Costco. 

I disagree with this big time

You do not become a tub of lard from 140lbs by just not being able to walk.  You are shoveling tubs of lard into your gaping mouth to get that big.  Don't tell me someone gets fat because they can't walk.  That's BS.  Monitor your damn eating and you will not grow to be a fat tub of lard.

 Monitor your damn eating and you will not grow to be a fat tub of lard.

     

All well said and done for active and healthy people, people that cannot live as a so called Normal person and are house bound sometimes find their only satisfaction they can get is eating.   Then along come the well meaning enablers family that keep feeding these people until they grow so big the ambulance has to take out the walls of the house and get a Crane to load them into the Ambulance to get them to the Hospital.  

We ask why the enablers kept feeding their loved ones, all so many reasons,  none that I would do but understand why others do.

It is an interesting world out there.   As far as I can see it is the enablers that destroy the ones they love.

[Zeus]

Deaf , Blind ,stupid or plain 'ol dumb or what passes as "normal" it's in ones best interest to be aware of ones surroundings to the best of ones abilities.

 "There, but for the grace of God, go I."

[franksolich]

Deaf , Blind ,stupid or plain 'ol dumb or what passes as "normal" it's in ones best interest to be aware of ones surroundings to the best of ones abilities.

 "There, but for the grace of God, go I."

Surely, sir, you demand way too much.

I'll never forget something that happened when I first moved up here eleven years ago.

Because I was new to the area, of unknown reputation, at first I had to support myself working various part-time and temporary jobs until something good came along.  One of them was unloading trucks for Dollar General.

One morning, the store fire-alarm went off, and the store was immediately evacuated.

Within five minutes, there were three fire trucks, two ambulances, two local law-enforcement vehicles, and one State Patrol vehicle, all circled around the front of the building.  There were uniformed people running around all over.  There were big thick fire-hoses laying on the ground, and in fact obstructing entry through the front door.  There were blinking lights all over the place, and I assume, some noise and tumult.  The inside of the store was dark, as the power'd been shut off.

A middle-aged woman and her teenaged son pulled into a parking-slot in front of the store, got out, and actually walked inside the place.  They were stopped about halfway through, and asked what the Hell they were doing there.

They acted utterly surprised; they hadn't noticed.

I suppose it's reasonable to assume they were hearing people.

I'm normally wary and vigilant, but being human without eyes on the back of my head, I don't see everything.

But quite obviously I notice what's going on around me more carefully than some people.

[obumazombie]

I really know better, and I'll probably regret it, but here goes. If handicapped people were stared at, vesta, you would be on about that, wouldn't you ? Wouldn't it be better for people to let handicaps blend in, and not stand out, otherwise being held "invisible" by all ? I wince and cower anticipating the response.

[Cruise]

Dear Frank, I know that your disability is a problem.  

You Frank are are a survivor of a disability that many of our returning sholders face from rockets bursting so close they cause them to become deaf.    They have allways had a life of sound, our men return to the our country just as deaf as you are.    They have no time to adjust to the condition or to learn to compensate for their loss.

So put me on your shit list, I care about about our men and women that find themselves in the same place of you but  ----living on the streets.  You Sir were born this way, others became the same way by serving our Nation.

A man with a limp may have been born this way, a man with a limp may have paid his price to the to the American public.

Sorry I cannot go with the disabled at birth, I have to honor and respect the disabled that have given up a normal life to Serve our Country.

Darn
Frank cannot you see the veterens coming home in worse shape then yourself.    Some as deaf as you or even worse then you in a scooter in a store,  You had no choice to be born deaf but those that come home alive did, they gave their all for America.

How do You know the man or woman in a scooter did not save the lives of their group in far away places with strange sounding names.      

Congratulations, I've lurked for a while and I've been prompted to sign up because of this extreme stupidity.  All I've got to say is -- if you think deafness is a "minor" handicap, look up any number of wellness statistics on it.  No literacy, very low employment levels; the outcomes are miserable for a reason. 

Oh, and getting deaf late in life has almost no resemblance to being born deaf.  Totally different challenges.  Late-deafened adults need a lot of adjustments, while deafies born that way don't develop an auditory cortex and so don't benefit as well from cochlear implants. 

frank, you probably don't remember me, but I was on FR a loooong time ago and we had a brief PM exchange there along with another deaf lady.  Been following you and your excellent writing here.  I don't have much to add but I can't stand by and see your basic integrity & handicap questioned.

[diesel driver]

Congratulations, I've lurked for a while and I've been prompted to sign up because of this extreme stupidity.  All I've got to say is -- if you think deafness is a "minor" handicap, look up any number of wellness statistics on it.  No literacy, very low employment levels; the outcomes are miserable for a reason. 

Oh, and getting deaf late in life has almost no resemblance to being born deaf.  Totally different challenges.  Late-deafened adults need a lot of adjustments, while deafies born that way don't develop an auditory cortex and so don't benefit as well from cochlear implants. 

frank, you probably don't remember me, but I was on FR a loooong time ago and we had a brief PM exchange there along with another deaf lady.  Been following you and your excellent writing here.  I don't have much to add but I can't stand by and see your basic integrity & handicap questioned.

Allow me to give you your first ^5 here.  You are absolutely correct, without the "foundation" of being able to hear sounds to begin with, how do you know the difference between a human voice and a train whistle.  I find Frank absolutely remarkable in the fact he CAN speak!

As far as handicaps go, my little brother lost his right arm above the elbow in a farm accident when he was 4 years old.  Today, he is a computer programmer, and the fastest one handed typist you've ever seen!  His 2 older brothers didn't treat him "special" just because he only had one arm, he never considered himself "special" either.  I'm sure Frank had a similar upbringing with his siblings, they knowing his limitations, but not limiting him in spite of his deafness.  My little brother did everything we did (except tie his shoes), he just did a lot of things "his way".

Handicapped people (most of them) don't want or need to be singled out, they just want to belong and be like everyone else, just in their own way.  When you get down to it, we ALL are handicapped in some way or another, whether or not we allow our handicaps to become debilitating (and to what degree) is up to us.

[vesta111]

I really know better, and I'll probably regret it, but here goes. If handicapped people were stared at, vesta, you would be on about that, wouldn't you ? Wouldn't it be better for people to let handicaps blend in, and not stand out, otherwise being held "invisible" by all ? I wince and cower anticipating the response.

A conditioned responce for me, some thing like opening a door for the person behind me or giving aid to a shopper to reach something over their head.

Strange that some people will get down right huffy if you lend a courtesy to them. Others are greatfull and thank you, others ignore you.

Conditioned responce from raising my litter of kids to working with the old timers that were so disabled a major problem for them was to hold their own glass of water or feed themselves.   

From time to time we see those videos of some poor soul that collapses on the side walk and people just keep walking around them. They become invisible to others.
 My sons grandmother came close to dieing that way, Bitter cold day she had gone shopping and on the way back to her car had gone into a diabetic seasure.   It did not help that she had gone to ground outside a bar.    Finally the cops came and as in some cases the breath smells like a sweet wine considered her drunk and placed her in the drunk tank.   Only by fortune did a family friend see this happen, call her husband and he was able to get downtown with a carton of orange juice.  A very close call.

Problem with diabetes is that no two people react the same way when their sugar falls.  Some will put up a fight when anyone try to get them to eat or drink a sugar or carbohydrate cracker.   At times they will not recognise family members, right  out of the blue this can happen.  Problem is the person can look healthy other wise live a normal life but as diabetes is on the rise all over the world this is becoming a common thing. But there are no tell tales to this problem.

The very old, the very young, those with a physical problem need to be looked after, when was the last time you made eye contact to someone in a wheel chair and said a hello to acknowledge their existence ???? 

The measure of a civilized society is how the young, the old, he halt and the lame are treated.   We no longer see the handicapped as in times ago were ignored-----I believe it was Jesus that objected to the Lepers of his time becoming invisible, outcasts and not worthy to be treated as humans.  He saw the worth of every man and was the first to come to their aid.   

Today we see the wheel chair, scooter, walking aid of others but do not see the person using them.  No eye contact, no acknowledgement of their presence, -------Can this be tracked to inward fear that there but for the grace of God go I, and or my child ????

[Skul]

>snip<
Today we see the wheel chair, scooter, walking aid of others but do not see the person using them.  No eye contact, no acknowledgement of their presence, -------Can this be tracked to inward fear that there but for the grace of God go I, and or my child ????

Why would you single out handicapped for preferential treatment? 
I doubt you do that sort of thing to "normal" people.
Ones actions are dictated by the surroundings and circimstances at the time.
Grocery stores are not social settings.
In answer to your last statement, no, its a privacy issue. Call it personal space if yoo wish.

[Cruise]

Allow me to give you your first ^5 here.  You are absolutely correct, without the "foundation" of being able to hear sounds to begin with, how do you know the difference between a human voice and a train whistle.  I find Frank absolutely remarkable in the fact he CAN speak!

As far as handicaps go, my little brother lost his right arm above the elbow in a farm accident when he was 4 years old.  Today, he is a computer programmer, and the fastest one handed typist you've ever seen!  His 2 older brothers didn't treat him "special" just because he only had one arm, he never considered himself "special" either.  I'm sure Frank had a similar upbringing with his siblings, they knowing his limitations, but not limiting him in spite of his deafness.  My little brother did everything we did (except tie his shoes), he just did a lot of things "his way".

Handicapped people (most of them) don't want or need to be singled out, they just want to belong and be like everyone else, just in their own way.  When you get down to it, we ALL are handicapped in some way or another, whether or not we allow our handicaps to become debilitating (and to what degree) is up to us.

I, too, am deaf.  I can't speak to the degree Frank can, and can asset that he is absolutely amazing, and he worked VERY hard to get to that point. 

Kudos on your attitude and your brother.  That is absolutely the right way to treat disabled people -- like equals and stop limiting their limitations.  Unlike the primitives that apparently would rather see us live in miserable poverty as the visible target of everyone's pity, unless said disabled is a conservative.  Then, they must assume godhood status or they will be shunned.

Thanks for the welcome.  Now to figure out this high-five system..