Medicare is paying an average of about $60 million a year for mechanized lounge chairs that have questionable medical value, a draft report by the Department of Health and Human Services says. The department's inspector general is investigating several companies that sell the chairs, looking for fraud, said Judy Holz, spokeswoman for the inspector's office. She would not say how many companies were being investigated or the type of possible fraud. The seats of the chairs raise mechanically to help people stand up. Advertised as ''seat lift chairs,'' they are often promoted on television as being free to Medicare recipients with arthritis, back pain or other ailments. Medicare, the Federal health insurance plan for the elderly and the disabled, reimburses recipients for most of the cost of medical equipment. The inspector general's report was prompted after the number of claims for the seat lift chairs increased from about 200,000 in 1984 to over 700,000 in 1985. The report attributes the increase to ''aggressive nationwide marketing,'' particularly television advertising.

Medicare spent $185 million on 1.6 million claims for seat lift chairs from 1984 to 1987, according to the Health Care Financing Administration. Such a chair costs $600 to $1,800. A spokesman for the Seat Lift Chairs Manufacturers Association said the chairs had obvious medical value. ''Seat lift chairs help anyone who has difficulty getting in and out of a chair without assistance,'' said Kenneth Berlin, a Washington lawyer who represents the association. ''They are prescribed by doctors to keep people out of nursing homes and off of pain-killing medication.'' Study Questions Chairs' Use The mechanized chairs are likened to La-Z-Boy recliners in the inspector general's draft report. Most chair owners interviewed for the report used the chairs primarily as home furniture. The report also said many doctors who authorized payment for the chairs were pressured by their patients and the companies that sell them. ''This is almost fraud, if not fraud, the way these people solicit our beneficiaries,'' said Dr. Robert D. Long, a Nebraska physician quoted in the report.

''The more money we spend on things like these, the less there is going to be for the really necessary, truly medical care services and equipment.'' The remarks were attributed to an unidentified doctor in the report; a department official provided his name in an interview. The draft report is being reviewed by the Health Care Financing Administration, which oversees Medicaid spending. After a final report in late February, the agency will decide whether to take action regarding the eligibility of seat lift chairs as an item qualifying for Medicare reimbursement. Most people who ordered seat lift chairs did so after seeing television commercials that say people covered by Medicare could receive the chairs for free by calling a toll-free telephone number, the report said. Many companies selling the chairs waived the 20 percent share of the bill Medicare recipients are obliged to pay for medical equipment. Medicare pays the remaining 80 percent. The report covered chair sales in 1984 and 1985.

Those who respond to the advertisements are mailed a prescription for a doctor to sign, the report says. Sometimes companies did not wait for a doctor's authorization before delivering the chair. Many doctors then felt compelled to authorize Medicare payment for the purchase, the report said, or their patients would have to pay the entire bill for chair. The report said that private insurance companies generally do not cover the cost of the seat lift chairs. The representative for the seat lift manufacturers said the report's conclusions were biased interpretations of a small sample. chaise lounge chairs that lay flatOver 200,000 doctors have prescribed seat lift chairs for their patients since 1984, Mr. Berlin said.wheelchair van rentals virginia ''Doctors fully support the medical need to keep someone out of a nursing home and I consider that a positive,'' said Mr. Berlin.ace hardware table and chair rental

''The only reason they are going after seat lift chairs is because of what they call 'aggressive advertising techniques,' '' said Mr. Berlin. ''I don't see anything wrong with advertising a product if it makes people aware of something that may be of use to them,'' he said. ''I don't see what is wrong with people who see the product on TV going to their doctors and suggesting that they might benefit from its use.'' Kick your feet up with a Lazy Boy There’s nothing quite like getting home and being able to put up your feet and lie back after a long day. dining room chairs gautengRecliner chairs are great for this, simply pull a lever and you’ll be able to swing back into a much more relaxing position. used wheelchair ramps portableChoose a chair that will suit your lounge style from our range of chairs available to buy online from the luxurious leather through to the funky fabric styles. red blue chair cassina

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