how much does an adult-size wheelchair cost?

leslie :-D · Dec 24, 2006

i'd say between a few hundred and a few thousand.

yrs ago i had a hospice pt who badly needed a new wc.

insurance wouldn't pay for it, nor would the family.

they figured she was dying soon, so why invest the money?

but her current one was a disaster waiting to happen; very unsafe.

so i ended up buying her one for under $400.

it was a bare bones manual one but i liked that it came in extra wide w/o the extra cost, and the shipping was free.

this website also had consumer ratings of the popular wheelchairs.

i don't think i'm allowed to give the name of the website (per tos) but if you care to pm me.....

leslie

wildmountainchild · Dec 24, 2006

Around 500 bucks for just a real basic model. If you only need it for a while you can rent it. I did that after my hip surgery. The rental fee was only $20 or something and my insurance paid for all of it.

If you have a Dr.'s rx for lifetime wheelchair use then your insurance company will likely buy it for you. Otherwise they will rent it for you.

You can also look for used wheelchairs on e-bay or on craigslist.org.

Good luck.

P_RN, ADN, RN · Dec 24, 2006

What kind of w/c and what kind of patient? I got my mother a really cool 4 wheel walker that has a seat she can either put her purse on or turn around and sit and let me push her for a while.

Ohmygosh · Dec 24, 2006

My insurance company paid $1500 for a extra wide manual chair for one of my family members.

marilynmom, LPN, NP · Dec 24, 2006

It really varies greatly. My mom is in a wheelchair. We got her a new bare bones basic manual one for $150, but her powerchair cost $6,000.

GingerSue · Dec 24, 2006

thanks

this would be for a adult male who was walking prior to some lower extremity problems, and getting weaker by being immobile in bed, but he wants to return to his home rather than be sent to a long-term facility forever

I don't know if he has the strength to use a manual one, he might need one where he could operate it by using a power lever

GingerSue · Dec 24, 2006

this website also had consumer ratings of the popular wheelchairs.
i don't think i'm allowed to give the name of the website (per tos) but if you care to pm me.....
leslie

I tried to click for your profile/email - but it won't display anything, so I can't pm you (funny thing is that I can click on all the other members and the display boxes all appear except not yours)

Daytonite, BSN, RN · Dec 24, 2006

A couple of years ago I purchased a scooter for my mother from the same company that provides the battery operated shopping carts in the supermarkets. I got the company name off the name plate of one of the carts in the supermarket. It cost about $1900 and was shipped to us by UPS. It disassembles into 3 parts so can be put into the trunk of the car easily. These scooters are designed for people who can stand but can't sustain walking.

When you get into battery and electric operated chairs, the costs go up considerably. Have you tried doing a web search? You should be able to find plenty of brands and pricing on the Internet. Cadillacs in electric wheelchairs run over $6,000.

wooh, BSN, RN · Dec 24, 2006

Definitely check out ebay or craigslist. I got a hoyer for my mom (who cares for my little sister) at a VERY good price on ebay.

GingerSue · Dec 25, 2006

thanks for the ideas, I check around