SECTION 554.2756. Administrative Requirements for Durable Medical Equipment and Customized Manual Wheelchairs

(a) A nursing facility must ensure that only the designated resident to whom DME or a CMWC belongs uses the DME or CMWC. A nursing facility must identify the DME or CMWC as the personal property of the designated resident.

(b) If the designated resident who was provided DME or a CMWC is discharged from a nursing facility, the designated resident retains the DME or CMWC.

(c) If a designated resident who was provided DME or a CMWC dies, the DME or CMWC becomes property of the designated resident's estate. As part of the estate, the DME or CMWC is subject to the Medicaid Estate Recovery Program requirements in 1 TAC Chapter 373 (relating to Medicaid Estate Recovery Program).

(d) If DME or a CMWC is donated or sold to a nursing facility by a designated resident or the personal representative of a designated resident's estate, the transaction must be documented in accordance with §19.416 of this chapter (relating to Personal Property).

(e) A modification, adjustment, or repair to DME or a CMWC required within the first six months after delivery of the DME or CMWC is the responsibility of the DME supplier. More than six months after delivery of DME or a CMWC, a nursing facility must maintain and repair all medically necessary equipment for a designated resident, including DME or a CMWC obtained under this division, as required by §19.2601(b)(8)(C) of this chapter (relating to Vendor Payment (Items and Services Included)).

(f) A nursing facility must submit a request to replace DME or a CMWC of a designated resident in the same manner as a request for the authorization to provide DME or a CMWC to a designated resident. HHSC does not approve a request to replace a CMWC made within five years after a CMWC was purchased for the designated resident, unless the request includes:

(1) an order from the designated resident's attending physician; and

(2) an assessment by an occupational therapist or physical therapist licensed in Texas, with documentation explaining why the designated resident's current CMWC no longer meets the designated resident's needs.

Source Note: The provisions of this §554.2756 adopted to be effective September 10, 2017, 42 TexReg 4468; transferred effective January 15, 2021, as published in the Texas Register December 11, 2020, 45 TexReg 8871