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Where To Buy A Raised Toilet Seat ?

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So, you want to buy a raised toilet seat? Well, most of the large retailers have you covered, and I have narrowed that down somewhat further for you here. But you may want to hold off if you have Medicare Part B or C to find out if you qualify for coverage. And if you are okay with refurbished equipment, I have lots of leads for you there too.

You can buy raised toilet seats at Walmart, Amazon, Walgreens, Home Depot, , Lowes, and at specialist medical suppliers like Rehabmart.com. If you want to buy a refurbished raised toilet seat you have medical equipment refurbishment outlets all across the US run by non-profits and state AT programs with online equipment  exchanges.

Who has the widest range of raised toilet seats ?

 

Walmart has several hundred models, and Amazon must be around the same number, although Amazon will vary depending on what the individual merchants are selling.

Walmart and Amazon carry almost every type of raised toilet seat that is available in the US  – risers, hinged risers, risers with armrests, bubble seats, seats with spacers, side locking seats, front locking seats without armrests, front locking seats with armrests, extra wide front locking with legs and raised toilet seats with a safety frame.

Walmart and Amazon have by far the largest number of brands – of the established brands they each carry at least 20, and Amazon also carry Vive which I have not found at Walmart.

Walmart and Amazon carry the following established brands for raised toilet seat – AquaSense, Bemis, Carex, DMI, Drive Medical, Easy Comforts, Equate, Essential Medical, Graham Field, Healthsmart, Lumex, Maddak, McKesson, Medline, Mobb, Nova, PCP, Probasics, and Vaunn Medical.

Home Depot carries around 50 models and has 8 of the best established brands. If you want to buy Centoco seats with spacers underneath, Home Depot has more than 10 different models, and I am not sure even Amazon beats that.

The brands Home Depot carries are AquaSense, Bemis, Carex, Centoco, Delta, DMI, Drive Medical, Glacier Bay, Healthsmart and Medline.

Home Depot sells bubble seats, seats with spacers, risers, hinged risers, risers with armrests, side locking seats, front locking seats, front locking seats with armrests and raised toilet seat with safety frame.

Lowes has around 26 different raised toilet seats, and the types they sell are risers, hinged risers, risers with armrests, bubble seats, side locking seats, front locking seats without armrests, and front locking seats with armrests.

Lowes carries the following brands – Carex, Delta, Drive Medical, Essential Medical supply and Moen.

Walgreens has a small range of around 23 raised toilet seats, again all from well known brands – AquaSense, Carex, Drive Medical, Essential Medical, Healthsmart and Nova.

Walgreens’ stock of raised toilet seats consists of risers, risers with armrests, bubble seats, side locking seats, front locking seats with armrests, and front locking seats without armrests.

Rehabmart.com sells between 40 and 50 models of raised toilet seat including risers, hinged risers, risers with armrests, bubble seats, seats with spacers, side locking seats, front locking seats without armrests, front locking seats with armrests, extra wide front locking with and without legs and raised toilet seats with a safety frame.

The brands carried by Rehabmart.com are AquSense, Bemis, Carex, Drive, Etac, Guardian, Handicare, Maddak, North Coast, Performance Health, and TFI Healthcare.

How much does a raised toilet seat cost ?

 
Raised toilet seats can range widely in price, from as little as $15.00, all the way up to $259.00.

The price range above does not include specialist bariatric bedside commodes, which can cost multiple hundreds of dollars, because they have weight capacities from 500 to 1000 lb.

If you want to know more about how much raised toilet seats cost, I have an article with a wide range of models, both in the UK and in the US.

There is also a section about how to find less expensive, and free, used raised toilet seats in your local area.

The article is “How Much Does A Raised Toilet Seat Cost ?”.

If I were shopping for a raised toilet seat, where would I go ?

 

Walmart and Amazon have by far the largest selections, literally hundreds.

I think that Walmart’s site is easier to look at, and doesn’t mix in so many results you didn’t ask for, but of the two I really don’t think there is much of a difference.

Rehabmart.com is a great company run by occupational therapists, and they have a range of 40-50 raised toilet seats with all the big brands, and all the model types. So if you want to support a smaller company which is really run to help people with physical ailments and handicaps, then this is a great choice.

Home Depot has actually got about the same number of seats as Rehabmart.com, but they had a large number of spacer seats by Centoco, so if you are looking for those, the Home Depot is the place for you. But they also have all the types of raised toilet seats, and they have the most established brands like Drive and Carex.

Lowes and Walgreens have much smaller ranges of raised toilet seats, but they do have the big brand names.

I think I would personally go to Rehabmart.com first, just because I like a smaller company to support them, and if they don’t have what it is I am looking for, then I would go to Walmart or Amazon as their ranges are enormous.

If I had to choose between Walmart and Amazon, I would go with Walmart, just because I don’t know who the sellers are on Amazon if there is a problem, and Walmart is right there.

 

Established brands of raised toilet seats

 

If you are looking for a raised, the following list is of well known brands of raised toilet seat which can be relied upon for their build quality.

The list includes brands which make risers, hinged risers, risers with armrests, bubble seats, seats with spacers, side locking seats, front locking seats without armrests, front locking seats with armrests, extra wide front locking with and without legs and raised toilet seats with a safety frame –

 

  • AquaSense
  • Bemis
  • Centoco
  • Carex
  • DMI
  • Drive
  • Equate
  • Essential Medical
  • Etac
  • Graham Field
  • Guardian
  • Invacare
  • Lumex
  • Maddak
  • McKesson
  • Medline
  • Mobb
  • Nova
  • PCP
  • Performance Health
  • Probasics
  • TFI Healthcare
  • Vive

Do you have Medicare Part B or a Medicare Advantage plan ?

 

Before you buy a raised toilet seat, if you have either Medicare Part B, or a Medicare Advantage plan, you may want to consider the purchase of a bedside commode through a Medicare-enrolled supplier, as it may, if you qualify, be covered for up to 80% of the cost of the commode, if it is considered “medically necessary”.

A bedside commode works over a toilet as a raised toilet seat, and whereas Medicare Part B will not cover a raised toilet seat, it will cover a bedside commode, if, as I just said, you are enrolled and qualify.

I have outlined the conditions below, but should you wish to find out more about getting a bedside commode through Medicare, I have an article all about how it works, and which touches on other funding sources if you don’t have Medicare. That article, “Does Medicare Cover Bedside Commodes ?” can be read here.

In the article, I also give an explanation of how persons on Medicaid may also qualify for durable medical equipment for free through different state programs, HCBS waivers and 1915 waivers.

Programs will vary by state, but for those on Medicaid if you qualify, you can get into a program where durable medical equipment for the home is covered.

Go to the second half of this article here. You can check what programs are available in your state using the links I have put in the article, and you will also find out whom you have to contact to find out if you qualify.

 

When will Medicare cover a bedside commode  ?

 

For Medicare Part B to cover 80% of the Medicare-approved price for a bedside commode you must be  –

 

  • enrolled in Medicare Part B
  • and have a Medicare-enrolled physician give you a signed prescription certifying that a bedside commode is a medical necessity for you

 

This is the Medicare text –
Commode chairs
Part B (Medical Insurance) covers commode chairs as durable medical equipment(DME) when ordered by a doctor for use in your home if you can’t use a regular toilet.

You will find the text here at Medicare.gov.

Your physician has to show that you are medically unable to use the toilet, or get to the toilet without assistance.

Once you have your prescription, you can then take that to see a Medicare-enrolled supplier and choose from the models of  bedside commode for which you have a prescription.

If you go to a supplier who accepts assignment you will pay 20% of the Medicare-approved price for the bedside commode, as your coinsurance, and if your deductible applies you will have that to pay as well.

Paying your Medicare deductible for a $100 bedside commode looks a little crazy, as it is more than the price of the bedside commode, but if you already paid your deductible for something else it doesn’t apply, and in which case you will get a $100 commode for $20.

With Medicare Advantage plans, you are entitled to all the same services that you get with Medicare Part B, so long as you stick within your plan’s network.

Prior to the enrollment of plans this fall, bathroom equipment other than bedside commodes did not qualify for coverage, but now Medicare Advantage plans may cover some equipment for chronic conditions, and so you may see that raised toilet seats and other bathroom safety equipment may be covered by some Advantage plans in this latest rollout.

Where do you buy a bedside commode with Medicare Part B ?

 

You can only use Medicare-enrolled suppliers if you are to get coverage, and to get the lowest coinsurance payment you should only use “Medicare Participating Suppliers” and only those who accept assignment.

If you want to find a local DME supplier you can do it here on  Medicare.gov.

 

If you are a Veteran, can you get your raised toilet seat covered ?

 

The Department of Veterans’ Affairs has grants, programs, forms of financial assistance and pensions which will help to cover the cost of equipment such as raised toilet seats for veterans.

To get more information and to find out about your local VA Medical Centers, Clinics and offices, use this link here.

Where you will be able to buy the raised toilet seat may, or may not, depend on the funding, you may, or may not, have to use a specific supplier, just as with Medicare.

 

Where can you buy a refurbished raised toilet seat  ?

 

If you are happy to buy a “gently used” raised toilet seat which is sold “as is”, then you have the option of going to stores like Goodwill, the Salvation Army and other thrift stores.

 

Goodwill

Local Goodwill stores exist all across the US.

You can use this link to find your local Goodwill store – https://www.goodwill.org/locator/

Salvation Army

Again, this is a huge organization with stores across the country, so use their locator to find a store near you.

You can find out how on their website  – https://satruck.org/

Area Agency On Aging

 

If you go to see your local Area Agency on Aging, they will be able to tell you about all kinds of programs in your area for the elderly, as they work with local community groups working to help caregivers and the elderly.

The agency should know about reuse centers near you, which may refurbish and sanitize used medical equipment, including raised toilet seats.

You can use their locator tool to find your local Area Agency on Aging – click here to do so.

Assistive Technology Programs

 

Assistive Technology Programs – these are state programs developed to increase access for the elderly and the disabled to AT devices and equipment.

These state programs are often partnered with nonprofit and community organizations who work to recycle and refurbish AT devices and medical equipment.

The state AT programs will all have a website through which they coordinate their services, different events that they run statewide and their outreach.

You can register on these sites with the program if you are in need of assistance and equipment.

The website will also have contact numbers where you can call to find out all about refurbishing centers, and how you may be able to buy cheap medical equipment, or in cases of proven financial difficulty get things for free.

In addition to this, almost all AT Programs have an “Online AT Exchange”, where once you have registered (for free) you can exchange, buy, sell or donate equipment. You need only be a resident of the state to join, and you can really find some great deals, or even gifts from others on the exchange.

I have an article in which I have made a list all of these AT Programs, with links to their websites and their Online AT Exchanges – the article is actually about donating equipment, but there is a list of the exchange websites by state. You can just jump to the list of states halfway down the article, click on your state, and it will take you to the information about your state AT program and a link to the website and the online exchange. You can find all that here.

 

Frequently asked questions

Does Medicare cover raised toilet seats ?

 

Medicare does not give coverage to raised toilet seats, as they are considered not to be primarily medical in nature.

Certain models of bedside commode are covered by Medicare Part B, for use in the home, with stipulations, and can be used as a raise toilet seat.

Who benefits from a raised toilet seat ?

 

Anyone who has difficulty sitting down, or standing up from the toilet, can benefit from a raised toilet seat.

This will include those with arthritis, Parkinson’s, balance issues, reduced mobility, a lack of muscles, visual impairments, and anyone in rehab from a knee or hip surgery.

Is there a way to raise a toilet seat ?

 

To raise a toilet seat, you can –

  1. raise the toilet itself with a “toilet base riser”, or “toilet plinth”, don’t confuse this with a toilet seat riser
  2. use a form of raised toilet seat which attaches to the bowl
  3. use a freestanding raised toilet seat
  4. buy a tall toilet

 

When can you use a regular toilet after a hip replacement ?

 

For those individuals who have been told to use a raised toilet seat after hip surgery by their surgeon – typically for lateral and posterior hip replacements – the precaution will usually be taken for up to 6 to 10 weeks following the surgery.

How does a raised toilet seat help ?

 

A raised toilet seat reduces the distance a user has to bend when using the toilet.

This not only makes it easier to use the toilet, but can also increase the user’s confidence, privacy and independence, if it allows them to use the toilet alone.

Raised toilet seat weight capacity ?

 

Raised toilet seats all have different weight capacities, ranging from 220 lb all the way up to over 1000 lb.

Standard raised toilet seat models which attach to the bowl have varying weight capacities in the range 0f 220 lb to 350 lb, with only a few exceptions.

The heavy duty seats, with the exception of Big John, and Bemis tall seats, are all 3-in-1 bedside commodes which can be used over the toilet as a raised toilet seat, and as I said some models will support over 1000 lb.

Who makes the tallest comfort height toilet ?

 

Comfort height toilet seats are 17-19 inches from the floor.

The Americans with Disabilities Act stipulates that the height of a toilet seat must come within this range.

Companies making these comfort height toilets, include Kohler, American Standard, DeerValley, and more.

What is the highest raised toilet seat ?

 

The highest raised toilet seat is the OasisSpace Stand Alone Safety Frame and Raised Toilet Seat, which has a maximum seat height of 27.5 inches.

The tallest raised toilet seat which attaches to the toilet seat is a 6 inch high seat, of which there are many models, but even on the tallest standing toilet they are not as high as the OasisSpace Stand Alone Safety Frame and Raised Toilet Seat.

I’m Gareth, the author and owner of Looking After Mom and Dad.com

I have been a caregiver for over 10 yrs and share all my tips here.

Gareth Williams

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