How is my wheelchair funded?
Introduction: There are several ways a wheelchair may be funded. You may have one on loan, you may be provided with a Personal Wheelchair Budget, you may get some additional funding from a charity or you may choose to buy your own wheelchair. This may all seem rather confusing and the following information will explain these different options and important things to consider.
Exactly how is my wheelchair funded?
Once you have had the all-important assessment to identify the dimensions and type of wheelchair you need, the way it will be paid for will be the next consideration. There is a huge variation in the cost with a standard wheelchair costing just over £150 to over £20,000 for wheelchairs with the latest technological features. Many people do not have the disposable income to pay for very expensive equipment and the following information highlights the choice you may have through the NHS. The words used to describe the funding choice can be confusing and the following explanations and links may help. It should be noted that the Wheelchair Alliance disclaimer covers all links within our FAQs unless the link is to an area within our own site, such as our newsletters or reports.
NHS England says the following about personal wheelchair budgets (PWBs), which should have replaced the voucher scheme offered by NHS provided wheelchair services:
A personal wheelchair budget is a resource available to support people’s choice of wheelchair, either within services provided by via the NHS or used outside of NHS provided services (e.g a private retailer). Personal wheelchair budgets enable postural and mobility needs to be included in wider care planning and can support people to access a wider choice of wheelchair.
With a personal wheelchair budget, wheelchair users should expect to have:
- a personalised assessment where they are supported to identify the health and wellbeing outcomes they wish to achieve (these are the goals you agree to enable you to perform tasks and activities at home, work, place of education and leisure)
- a care plan which captures the health and wellbeing outcomes identified, which may be part of any wider care plans the person requires for their care, for example an Education, Health and Care (EHC) plan
- care that is better integrated, meaning that different agencies work together to support their postural and mobility needs and achieve their health and wellbeing outcomes
- information provided upfront about the amount of money available in their personal wheelchair budget and the options available to them locally to use it
- information about the repair and maintenance of wheelchairs, if the option to purchase a wheelchair outside of the NHS commissioned service is taken.
Since 2 December 2019, people who access wheelchair services, whose posture and mobility needs impact their wider health and social care needs, have a legal right to a personal wheelchair budget.
The legal right covers people who are referred or already registered and meet the eligibility criteria of their local wheelchair service, when they require a new wheelchair either through a change in clinical needs or in the condition of the current chair.
The NHS site also answers some of the questions you may have. There are other resources available too, such as those written by the British Healthcare Trade Association (BHTA), as well as resources provided by local wheelchair services, either directly provided such as those in Leeds, or services provided for the NHS by private companies (NHS commissioned services), such as those on Cambridgeshire and Peterborough or in Kent and Medway. Searching online for your local wheelchair service will provide the information relevant to you.
At a glance the following diagram shows the different options available:
A Notional PWB:
This is the standard NHS provision. The wheelchair is on loan from the NHS wheelchair service and they are responsible for ongoing repair and maintenance. You will not be expected to contribute anything towards your wheelchair, although you may want to think about additional insurance (see ‘What about insurance and travel?’ section)
A Notional plus PWB:
Following assessment, you may discuss an alternative wheelchair that suits your agreed needs with your therapist. If the alternative wheelchair is from the NHS ‘catalogue’ range this may be provided at no additional cost to you.
Following assessment, you may wish to discuss an alternative wheelchair that has additional features or ‘add-ons’ that you would like and which are still included in the NHS ‘catalogue’. These will have an additional cost which can be contributed to by yourself, through joint funding (NHS, Continuing Health Care budget, Local Authority, Education, Access to Work for example) or through a charity. You should remember that you may be responsible for the repair, maintenance and insurance of these additional features and it is important to discuss this with your wheelchair service before making your final decision.A Third party PWB:
The value of the wheelchair that would have been provided to you by the NHS, is available for you to use to purchase your wheelchair through an independent provider. The wheelchair must meet your assessed needs for the funding to be released. It is important to know that wheelchairs on the NHS catalogue might be less expensive than those from an independent supplier, as that company has to cover other costs to deliver a service. Your budget will cover some costs for repair and maintenance but check what isn’t included and look into insurance too.