On June 3, the O&P Alliance, including AOPA’s President Charles Dankmeyer, and Executive Director Tom Fise, JD, met with the Deputy Administrator and Director of the Center for Program Integrity at CMS. The meeting included several topics: local coverage determination (LCD) recognition of O&P clinicians’ notes as part of the medical record; who can bill […]
Below is the text of an email AOPA Executive Director, Tom Fise, JD, sent to AOPA’s Board of Directors and allied organizations announcing the success of the sign-on letter that obtained the wide support of members of Congress responding to the full court press from AOPA members and the other O&P organizations. “I am pleased […]
AOPA recently brought the message to Congress that “Mobility Saves” with a special news briefing where participants could view the latest prosthetic technology, receive an overview of insurance challenges patients face, along with legislative, regulatory and research issues in Orthotics & Prosthetics, Medicare, VA, the Department of Defense and the private sector. Boston Marathon Bombing Survivor and […]
AOPA immediate past-president Anita Liberman-Lampear of University of Michigan Orthotics and Prosthetics Center has published an editorial in the Roanoke Times on the Dobson-DaVanzo research, funded by AOPA and commissioned by the Amputee Coalition, that used Medicare’s own data to prove that providing orthotics and prosthetics is cost-effective. The study was the basis for Mobility Saves, the public […]
Great news for O&P outcomes research! The $1.1 trillion combined continuing resolution and omnibus appropriations bill (the “cromnibus” bill) enacted December 13 to keep the government running includes a Department of Defense (DoD) section with an additional $10 million for O&P outcomes research funding. This was also included in last year’s budget and we are […]
Following the October 29 Medicare Appellant Forum hosted by the Office of Medicare Hearings and Appeals (OMHA), the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) opened a comment period to solicit suggestions for addressing the growth in the number of requests for Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) hearings, and to help to clear the backlog of […]
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has released the 2015 Medicare DMEPOS fee schedule, effective for claims with a date of service on or after January 1, 2015. The net Medicare fee increase for O&P services for 2015 is 1.5%. This is based on a 2.1% increase in the consumer pricing index for […]
New analysis from Dobson DaVanzo: 19% of patients with a Medicare-reimbursed Off the Shelf device later receive a custom-fitted or custom-fabricated orthotic device Medicare’s own data shows that frequently patients who receive a Medicare-reimbursed OTS device subsequently also receive a Medicare-reimbursed custom-fitted or custom-fabricated orthotic device. Clearly, some modest portion of these data reflect instances in […]
AOPA has been anticipating that the House Ways & Means Committee will be putting forward a bill to address Medicare fraud, hospitals, RACs and the long delays for ALJ hearings. Our strategy has involved working closely with two representatives who have been working on their own bills to address RAC problems, Reps. Renee Ellmers (R-NC), […]
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has released the new HCPCS codes for 2015. There were several changes to the codes that describe orthotics and prosthetics for 2015. Below is a breakdown of the new codes, code descriptor changes and code deletions. All changes are effective for claims with a date of service […]
