Repair Help for Do-It-Yourselfers, Outsourcers

Correction: An earlier version of this article incorrectly identified David Kazan, Invacare's iPartner Solutions vice president of sales and marketing. The company also points out that its 5 Star Service plan may only be purchased with new Invacare brand consumer power chairs or scooters ($150 for a wheelchair and $100 for a scooter). Once the power chair or scooter is covered by the plan, "the provider need not worry about servicing the equipment again. Roadrunner's technicians will take care of everything, both during and after the warranty period," Invacare says.

Whether you are looking to establish or upgrade your own repair center or seeking more efficient ways to outsource repairs, there is help. Following are some possibilities:

iPartner Solutions

Earlier this year, Elyria, Ohio-based Invacare unveiled this new tool designed to help providers with a variety of business elements, including repairs. Under its 5 Star Service Plan, providers have access to a nationwide team of technicians to service Invacare power wheelchairs or scooters either in their homes or offsite if needed.

"The reason providers are looking at this … is all about cost," says David Kazan, iPartner's vice president of sales and marketing. "In today's environment, and certainly in an environment that starts when the 9.5 cut in reimbursement [is implemented], you can't do things as you usually have. You have to find ways to do business better, streamline activities, reduce costs, evaluate ways to do things like service."

The 5 Star program is aligned with the initial power wheelchair warranty and allows providers to outsource the chair repairs, thus paring or eliminating such expenses as inventory of loaner chairs or scooters (the program includes a loaner), expanding fleets and staffing technicians with specialized training in complex rehab repair, Kazan says.

"It might be prohibitively expensive for you to service that," he says. "It's an economy-of-scale thing — we have scale and reach."

The program is built on Invacare's acquisition last year of Roadrunner Mobility, a network of techs focused on "nothing but service [of] power chairs," Kazan says.