Answers to frequently asked questions
Application and assumption of costs
The regulations governing the financing of assistive products are complex. The decisive factors are the insurance and individual requirements, the cause of the disability and the purpose of the assistive products. All the important facts are described in the Procedure & Financing section.
Depending on the individual case, the health insurance fund will also cover the costs of an assistive product that does not have an assistive product number. The assistive product must either ensure the success of 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 therein may also be covered by the health insurance fund's obligation to provide benefits in accordance with Section 33 SGB V if the relevant eligibility requirements are met. However, an assistive product number is no guarantee that the costs will be covered by the health insurance companies. For each treatment, it is checked whether the above-mentioned requirements are met by the requested assistive products and whether it is satisfactory, appropriate and economical.
There are several court rulings that deal with specific circumstances and confirm that an assistive product cannot be rejected simply because it does not have an assistive product number.
If your application has been unjustifiably rejected, you can lodge an opposition in writing within a certain period of time.
The REHADAT team can answer general questions, but cannot assist with the application process. For this, you can contact, for example, medical, therapeutic or educational specialists, the contact points of the rehabilitation providers, the Supplementary Independent Participation Advice Service (EUTB), the technical advisory services (e.g. from the Integration Office/Inclusion Office or the Employment Agency), self-help associations, social associations or company agents (e.g. severely disabled persons' representatives).
You can find out more about the advice centers in the individual sections under Procedure & Funding.
Differentiation 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 disabilities. 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 GKV list of assistive products and nursing aids is compiled by the National Association of Statutory Health Insurance Funds, the governing body of the statutory health insurance funds in Berlin. This official directory lists products that are in principle covered by the statutory health or long-term care insurance and therefore have a SHI-assistive product number.
REHADAT merely maps the Statuatory Health Insurance's Medical Technical Aids Register and is not responsible for its content.
The assistive product number (also known as the HMV number or Statuatory Health Insurance's Medical Technical Aids Register number) defines a specific product in the Statutory Health Insurance (GKV) 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.
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 consecutive numbering. The individual areas are separated by a period. Only the last two areas are combined, resulting in the following spelling, for example: 12.34.56.7890
| Product group | 12. |
|---|---|
| Application location | 12.34. |
| Product subgroup | 12.34.56. |
| Product Type | 12.34.56.7 |
| Consecutive number | 12.34.56.7890 |
The assistive product number is used for the provision of (care) assistive products by statutory health insurance companies. Every product with an assistive product number is covered by the statutory health and long-term care insurance companies. However, an assistive product number is not always mandatory for the provision of care.
You can access the entire Statuatory Health Insurance's Medical Technical Aids Register 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 the job. 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.
More than 12,000 products are currently documented in REHADAT-Assistive Products. The product overview therefore does not represent the entire market and does not constitute a ranking.
The portal also provides practical information on the care process, application proceedings and funding in order to promote the self-determination, rehabilitation and participation of people with disabilities.
Use of the portal is free of charge.
The top search bar is useful for a quick and rough overview.
In addition, you will find the dialog symbol of our search assistant Ariadne at the bottom right of every page. You can enter entire questions in the dialog box. Ariadne is based on artificial intelligence and learns from your questions.
However, we also offer specific search methods. Simply click on the links below and try them out!
Apps are software applications for mobile devices. They can support people with disabilities and thus also be assistive products. As the market for apps is growing rapidly, REHADAT only documents selected apps for people with disabilities.
The quickest way to find the individual apps listed 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 any products. To do so, you must contact the manufacturers or distributors whose addresses are listed in the respective product descriptions.
The REHADAT assistive technology database is an online service only. There is no summarized overview of assistive products. Product catalogs can be requested from the individual manufacturers or distributors. The contact details can be found in the respective product description in the "Manufacturer/Distributor" tab.
The ISO numbers (e.g. rollator: ISO 12 06 06) in the individual product descriptions are part of the international classification ISO 9999 "Assistive products for persons 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 on the basis of ISO 9999.
The ISO numbers are not the same as the SHI-assistive product numbers (e.g. rollator: GKV-HMV 10.46.02.3027).
REHADAT-Assistive Products focuses on documenting assistive products and technical work aids that are available from German distributors. However, interested parties also have the opportunity to search for products from abroad in the international assistive technology 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 independently. This service is free of charge.
You are welcome to send us interesting and well tried and tested assistive products or prototypes that we have not yet documented. Simply use our contact form!
We are a team of three with the support of energetic student employees, motivated colleagues from IT and external documentation centers.
- Mareike Decker is the team leader, an expert in the field of mobility and can answer questions about the private provision of assistive products.
- Patricia Traub is not only an expert in technical work aids, but also in car adaptations and financing issues.
- Lena Perings supports the manufacturing companies with product listings and manages the REHADAT Statuatory Health Insurance's Medical Technical Aids Register.
In addition, more than 20 other colleagues ensure that REHADAT always provides up-to-date information for participation in working life.
Get to know our team here.
REHADAT's task is to collect and process information in the field of occupational inclusion. REHADAT does this via the following formats:
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Apps
make it easy to research aspects of participation in working life while on the move. -
Lexicon on participation in working life
has more than 450 terms with explanations and definitions. From A for equalization levy to Z for subsidies. -
REHADAT explains
are videos that explain complex issues clearly and with understandable examples. -
REHADAT Compact
brings knowledge about participation in working life to the point. Each issue is dedicated to one topic and bundles knowledge on two pages. -
REHADAT portals
offer a wealth of information on participation in working life. You can find topic-specific access via rehadat.de. -
Seminars
on participation in working life and the provision of assistive products bring the topics closer in an exchange with our speakers. -
Participation & inclusion - the REHADAT podcast
joins the REHADAT family with authentic couples and provides practical information on ways to break down barriers in society and especially in working life. -
Knowledge series
provides basic knowledge about individual illnesses or disabilities as well as solutions for individual work arrangements.