Answers to frequently asked questions
Application and cost coverage
The regulations governing the financing of assistive products are complex. The decisive factors are the insurance law and individual requirements, the cause of the disability and the purpose of the assistive products. All the important facts are described in the Process & Financing section.
Depending on the individual case, the health insurance fund may also cover the costs of an assistive product that does not have an assistive product number. The assistive products must either ensure the success of a medical treatment, prevent an impending disability or compensate for a disability and must not be an everyday object.
The Statuatory Health Insurance's Medical Technical Aids Register is for guidance only and is not a binding positive list. Consequently, assistive products not listed in the list may also be covered by the health insurance fund in accordance with Section 33 of the German Social Code, Book V if the relevant eligibility criteria are met. However, an assistive product number does not guarantee that the costs will be covered by the health insurance funds. For each supply, it is checked whether the above-mentioned conditions are guaranteed by the assistive products applied for and whether they are satisfactory, appropriate and economical.
There are several court rulings that deal with specific facts and confirm that an assistive product may not be rejected only because of a missing assistive product number.
If your application has been unjustifiably rejected, you may file a written opposition within a certain period of time.
The REHADAT team can answer general questions, but cannot assist with the application process. For this purpose, you can contact, for example, medical, therapeutic or pedagogical specialists, the contact points of the rehabilitation agencies, the Supplementary Independent Participation Counseling (EUTB), the technical counseling services (for example, from the Integration Office/Inclusion Office or the Employment Agency), self-help associations, social associations or the company agents (for example, severely disabled persons' representation).
You can find out more about the advice centers in the individual sections in the Process & Financing section.
Demarcation between REHADAT-Assistive Products and Statuatory Health Insurance's Medical Technical Aids Register
REHADAT-Assistive Products documents a wide range of assistive products from real life areas for people with impairments. An assistive product number is not necessary for our documentation. Therefore, you will also find work aids, household aids or leisure aids that are not listed in the Statuatory Health Insurance's Medical Technical Aids Register.
In contrast, the National Association of Statutory Health Insurance Funds (National Association of Statutory Health Insurance Funds), the governing body of the statutory health insurance funds in Berlin, compiles the GKV list of assistive products and care aids. This official directory lists products that are covered by the statutory health or long-term care insurance and therefore have a SHI-assistive product number.
REHADAT only reproduces the Statuatory Health Insurance's Medical Technical Aids Register and is not responsible for the content.
The assistive product number (also HMV number or GKV number) defines a specific product in the Statuatory Health Insurance's Medical Technical aids register. This number always has ten digits and contains information on the classification of the product in the Statuatory Health Insurance's Medical Technical Aids Register.
Thus, the first two digits determine the product group, the next two the place of use, the following two the product subgroup, the next the product type, and the last three digits a sequential numbering. The individual ranges are separated in the notation by a period. Only the last two ranges are combined, resulting in the following notation, for example: 12.34.56.7890
| Product group | 12. |
|---|---|
| Application site | 12.34. |
| Product subgroup | 12.34.56. |
| Product Type: | 12.34.56.7 |
| Sequential number | 12.34.56.7890 |
The assistive product number is used for the provision of (nursing) assistive products by the statutory health insurers. Every product with an assistive product number is covered in principle by the statutory health and long-term care insurers. However, an assistive product number is not always mandatory for a supply.
The complete Statuatory Health Insurance's Medical Technical Aids Register can be accessed at REHADAT at www.rehadat-gkv.de.
The REHADAT-Assistive Products Portal
The portal collects and describes exemplary assistive products and technical work aids for everyday life and jobs. The aim is to provide a neutral overview of the German market in order to make products comparable and to support the choice of assistive products.
Currently, more than 12,000 products are documented in REHADAT-Assistive Products. The product overview therefore does not represent the entire market and does not represent a ranking.
In addition, the portal provides practical information on the supply process, application proceedings and financing in order to promote the self-determination, rehabilitation and participation of people with impairments.
Use of the portal is free of charge.
For a quick and rough overview, the upper search bar is useful.
In addition, you will find the dialog icon of our search assistant Ariadne on the bottom right of every page. In the dialog box, you can enter entire questions. Ariadne is based on artificial intelligence and learns with your questions.
We also offer specific search methods. Just click on the links below and try out the variants!
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Internal Link:
Menu item products
Structured overview according to areas of life close to everyday life -
Internal Link:
Advanced search
Targeted search with combinable fields -
REHADAT Link Opens in New Window:
Assistive Device Finder
Question-guided, activity-based search -
Internal Link:
Classification ISO 9999
Product structure by main function and direct display of the hit list
Apps are software applications for mobile devices. They can support people with impairments and thus also be assistive products. Since the market for apps is growing rapidly, REHADAT only documents selected apps for people with impairments.
The fastest way to find the individually recorded apps is to use the search term "app". Alternatively, you can use our special app search to search in the stores (for iOS, Android).
REHADAT does not sell products. For this, you must contact the manufacturers or distributors whose addresses are listed in the respective product descriptions.
REHADAT's database of assistive devices is purely an online offer. There is no summarized overview of aids. Product catalogs can be requested from the individual manufacturers or distributors. The contact details can be found in the respective product description in the tab "Manufacturer/Distributor".
The ISO numbers (for example rollator: ISO 12 06 06) in the individual product descriptions are part of the international classification ISO 9999 "Assistive products for people with disabilities - Classification and terminology". ISO 9999 is a health-related classification of the World Health Organization (WHO). For Germany, the German Institute for Standardization publishes the valid version as a DIN standard (DIN EN ISO 9999). All products in REHADAT are structured based on ISO 9999.
The ISO numbers are not to be equated with the SHI-assistive product numbers (for example, rollator: SHI-HMV 10.46.02.3027).
REHADAT-Assistive Products mainly documents assistive products and technical work aids that are available through a German distributor. However, interested parties also have the possibility to search for products from abroad in the international aids network EASTIN. All REHADAT products are also included in this network.
Manufacturers and distributors can report their assistive products and technical work aids online via the company section and update them themselves. This service is free of charge.
You are welcome to inform us about interesting and well tried and tested assistive products or prototypes that we have not yet documented. Simply use our contact form for this purpose!