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Exoskeletons qualify for direct disability compensation in Germany

144 points| bookofjoe | 3 years ago |therobotreport.com | reply

51 comments

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[+] amacbride|3 years ago|reply
One the insurance companies realize that this sort of device would be much cheaper than a home health aide, I expect adoption will grow.
[+] random314|3 years ago|reply
Insurance companies want health expenses to increase, not decrease.
[+] euroderf|3 years ago|reply
Robert Heinlein would be so psyched that exoskeleton battlesuits (potentially, at least: got mods?) are underwritten by the social welfare state.
[+] mrits|3 years ago|reply
Can't wait until they become mainstream and equipped with wifi. I can finally build my army
[+] hh3k0|3 years ago|reply
Always bums me out a bit when I read about health insurance providers fighting tooth and nail to prevent or delay improvements in patient care.
[+] DoreenMichele|3 years ago|reply
Most health insurance really should not exist. It's a fundamentally messed up idea.

Insurance is a bet. You look at the odds and price things accordingly so you can cover the occasional big payout with the premiums from people who don't "win" so to speak. Playing with the lives and health of people to try to skew the bottom line one way or the other is fundamentally a stupid human practice.

Government should provide some basic health services to protect the health of the nation as a whole, just like government tends to provide fire fighting services because letting one fool burn his own home down can burn down a lot more than just his home.

It's a complicated topic and a pet peeve of mine. This approach to trying to keep people healthy is deeply flawed.

Edit: Though I'm really not sure what your comment has to do with this article, to be honest.

[+] oaiey|3 years ago|reply
That is most likely a general tactic. If you are an early adopter, you also carry the initial extra cost. Take exoskeleton, gene therapy, ... whatever. When they fight it for ... let us say ... 10 years, the cost has gone significantly down to a probably reasonable level.

Health Insurance companies (especially non-totally-private ones) have an ugly battle of balancing the costs with the good of the many and not the individual.

[+] number6|3 years ago|reply
Only acceptable answer would be to check if it really works and not some kind of scam.
[+] theptip|3 years ago|reply
Here’s a thought - at what price point is it cheaper to buy everyone that needs one an exoskeleton than to rebuild every building to be ADA accessible?
[+] Cass|3 years ago|reply
Most wheelchair users are either elderly or suffering from some other deteriorating condition associated with pain, overall weakness, or instability, and will therefore likely not be able to use these. (Note that even in the promotional images, people are using crutches to balance in addition to the exo-skeletons.)

The classic "strong above the waist, paralyzed from the waist down" image of a wheelchair user that people might have from eg the paralympics is the minority.

[+] dgant|3 years ago|reply
ADA accessibility adds value to more than just the disabled. Wielding a stroller provokes appreciation.
[+] ralusek|3 years ago|reply
I propose that each building be equipped with a R2-D2/The Matrix brain jack terminal, so that the disabled can jack in to simulated experience of the building, thus freeing architecture from ADA constraints. I also vehemently oppose letting people connect from the comfort of their own homes, because it doesn't fit the aesthetic of my cyberpunk flavor.
[+] gibrown|3 years ago|reply
I think you are seriously overestimating the utility of these right now. It is not just about cost, they are more limited than wheelchairs in many ways.
[+] nickphx|3 years ago|reply
I think there are far more benefits than more easy access to public accommodations.. From the article, the patients that used the exoskeletons had an improved quality of life, reduction in pain from being wheel chair bound and were able to taper dosage on pain medication.
[+] agumonkey|3 years ago|reply
second order idea: give a lot of exoskeleton so rebuilding to ADA standard becomes cheap :)
[+] profile53|3 years ago|reply
Interesting question. I suspect that would be intrinsically tied to rate of manufacture. The cost of manufacturing exoskeletons will decrease over time while the cost of labor and building modifications will likely decrease.
[+] musingsole|3 years ago|reply
Around the same time that we cross that threshold, I expect we'll cross another where robots of various types might exist as infrastructure and so demand the same ramps as ADA but for different reasons.
[+] anonporridge|3 years ago|reply
Parallel thought.

Would there be some resistance from some subset of disabled people to be forced to use exoskeletons in place of wheelchairs if we decided to go this route?