Lawmakers seek to address fraud in O&P
By HME News Staff
Updated 11:17 AM CDT, Tue June 27, 2023
WASHINGTON – A bi-partisan group in the House of Representatives has introduced a bill that would prohibit “drop shipping” of custom orthoses and protheses to Medicare beneficiaries.
H.R. 4315, the Medicare Orthotics and Prosthetics Patient-Centered Care Act, would also:
- Ensure Medicare beneficiaries can access the full range of orthotic care from one O&P practitioner, rather than requiring them to visit multiple providers when the treating orthotist or prosthetist does not have a competitive bidding contract; and
- Ensure beneficiaries can access replacement custom-fitted and custom-fabricated orthoses when a change in their condition or clinical need occurs.
“This important legislation will ensure that individuals living with limb loss and limb difference have access to the safe, quality clinical care they need and deserve,” said Teri Kuffel, JD, president of the American Orthotic and Prosthetic Association. “It will also help address the costly fraudulent practices from providers outside the orthotics and prosthetics profession that Medicare beneficiaries have been experiencing in the recent years.”
Reps. GT Thompson, R-Pa., Mike Thompson, D-Calif., Brett Guthrie, R-Ky., and Angie Craig, D-Minn., introduced the bill.
GT and Mike Thompson, as well as Guthrie, introduced a similar bill in 2021.
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