Durable Medical Equipment After Hospital Discharge: Medicare Coverage and Delivery Timelines

Your parent is being discharged from a Texas hospital tomorrow and needs a hospital bed at home, a wheelchair for mobility, and oxygen equipment. The discharge planner mentioned "DME" but gave you no specifics on who delivers it, when it arrives, or whether Medicare covers the cost.

Here is what families need to know about durable medical equipment after a hospital discharge.

What Medicare Covers

Medicare Part B covers durable medical equipment when a physician certifies it is medically necessary for use in the patient's home. The patient pays 20% of the Medicare-approved amount after meeting the annual Part B deductible ($283 in 2026). Medicare pays the remaining 80%.

Commonly covered items include:

• Hospital beds — adjustable beds for patients who need specific positioning for medical conditions
• Wheelchairs and power mobility devices — manual wheelchairs, power chairs, and scooters
• Walkers and rollators — standard and wheeled walkers
• Oxygen equipment — concentrators, portable tanks, and related supplies
• CPAP/BiPAP machines — for sleep apnea and respiratory conditions
• Nebulizers — for medication delivery
• Commodes and raised toilet seats — for patients with limited mobility
• Patient lifts — Hoyer lifts for transferring non-ambulatory patients

Medicare does not cover items used primarily for convenience (bath seats in most cases, grabbing tools) or items the physician has not specifically ordered.

Rental vs Purchase

Medicare handles DME differently depending on the item:

Rental items: Hospital beds and certain power wheelchairs are rented on a month-to-month basis. After 13 consecutive months of rental, ownership transfers to the patient and Medicare stops paying. During the rental period, the DME supplier is responsible for maintenance and repairs.

Purchase items: Walkers, manual wheelchairs, commodes, and nebulizers are typically purchased outright. The patient pays 20% coinsurance at the time of delivery.

Capped rental items: Some equipment falls into a hybrid category where Medicare rents for a set period before the patient gains ownership.

The Delivery Timeline Problem

This is where hospital-to-home transitions frequently break down. The discharge planner writes the DME order, but the equipment does not arrive before the patient gets home.

To prevent this:

Start the DME order early. Ask the discharge planner to initiate the DME referral at least 48 to 72 hours before the planned discharge date. Equipment suppliers need time to verify insurance, obtain prior authorization if required, and schedule delivery.

Confirm the supplier. The hospital may refer you to a specific DME supplier, but you can choose any Medicare-certified supplier. If the referred supplier cannot deliver on time, call another.

Verify delivery date and time. Get a confirmed delivery window — not "sometime next week." If your parent is coming home Tuesday, the equipment needs to be in the home Tuesday morning.

Have a backup plan. If the hospital bed or wheelchair will not arrive on discharge day, ask the hospital about a loan of basic equipment (walker, bedside commode) to bridge the gap. Some hospitals have loaner programs.

Prior Authorization

Some DME items — particularly power wheelchairs and complex respiratory equipment — require prior authorization from Medicare or the patient's Medicare Advantage plan before the supplier can deliver. This process can take days.

If the physician anticipates your parent will need a high-cost DME item, push for the prior authorization process to begin during the hospital stay, not after discharge.

Common DME Mistakes After Discharge

No physician order on file. Medicare will not pay for DME without a signed physician order. Make sure the discharging physician completes the Certificate of Medical Necessity (CMN) before your parent leaves.

Using a non-participating supplier. If the supplier is not enrolled in Medicare, the patient pays the full cost. Verify enrollment through Medicare's Supplier Directory.

Not appealing a denial. If Medicare denies a DME claim, you have the right to appeal. The denial notice includes instructions for requesting a redetermination within 120 days.

The Hospital-to-Home Texas toolkit includes a DME order tracking worksheet and a pre-discharge equipment checklist — so nothing falls through the cracks on discharge day.

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