Tag: AOPA

SAN DIEGO – ResMed reported revenue increased 14% to $876.1 million for the fourth quarter of 2021 compared to the same period last year. Net income was $195.1 million vs. $177.8 million.  The company reported revenue increased 8% to $3.2 billion for fiscal year 2021 compared to the previous year. Net income was $474.5 million vs. $621.7 million.  “Our fourth quarter and full-year fiscal year 2021 results continue to demonstrate the strength and resiliency of our business,”...

WASHINGTON – Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., on July 29 reintroduced the Medicare Orthotics and Prosthetics Patient-Centered Care Act to improve access to care and combat fraud and abuse.   Companion legislation was reintroduced on March 18 in the House of Representatives.  “The American Orthotic and Prosthetic Association, whose over 2,000 members represent both the facilities that treat patients and the manufacturers of orthotic and prosthetic devices, has been advocating...

ALEXANDRIA, Va. – The American Orthotic & Prosthetic Association seeks nominations for its Lifetime Achievement Award. The award honors outstanding leaders who have made significant contributions to the advancement of patient care in the orthotics and prosthetics profession over their lifetimes, the association says. “They represent the brightest and most influential minds in the field,” it says. “Receiving the award is the highest honor bestowed upon an individual by AOPA.”...

ALEXANDRIA, Va. – The American Orthotic and Prosthetic Association expects a companion bill to H.R. 1990 to be introduced in the Senate soon. The bill includes provisions that would prohibit the use of drop shipping to deliver orthoses that are not specifically designated as off-the-shelf orthoses. AOPA believes the bills, if passed, would go a long way to curb fraud and abuse through the delivery of medically unnecessary orthoses to Medicare beneficiaries. “AOPA remains...

WASHINGTON – O&P practitioners have renewed their push to be recognized as clinicians – a distinction they say is critical now more than ever to ensure access to care.  While stakeholders have long fought for this, the COVID-19 pandemic has emphasized the need for it, says Justin Beland, director of government affairs for the American Orthotic and Prosthetic Association, because only certain clinicians have been able to get reimbursed for telehealth...

WASHINGTON - The single payment amounts for off-the-shelf knee and back braces under Round 2021 of competitive bidding will be about 30% to 35%, on average, below Medicare's current fee schedule, based on a preliminary analysis by the American Orthotic & Prosthetic Association. The reductions aren't necessarily a surprise, stakeholders say, but they have new meaning during a public health emergency. “The COVID environment business conditions are not anything like what they were when bids were...

ALEXANDRIA, Va. ­- The American Orthotic and Prosthetic Association has partnered with the Amputee Coalition to provide its members more resources to serve their patients. AOPA members will now be considered Amputee Coalition Partners and will be listed on the coalition's website as such. AOPA members will also receive materials to distribute, including: inMotion magazine; First Step: A Guide to Adapting to Limb Loss; and brochures for dealing with limb loss. AOPA members will receive a packet with...

WASHINGTON - The COVID-19 pandemic has shed new light on the ways in which grouping orthotists and prosthetists with other DME suppliers “handcuffs” them as medical practitioners, say stakeholders.“Every other medical profession is doing more telehealth, including OTs and PTs, and (being considered a supplier) is handcuffing us on being able to bill for telehealth,” said Justin Beland, director of government relations for the American Orthotic and Prosthetic Association.“I...

WASHINGTON - A bill that seeks to differentiate orthotics and prosthetics from durable medical equipment was recently introduced in the Senate.The Medicare Orthotics and Prosthetics Patient-Centered Care Act (S. 4503), sponsored by Sens. Mark R. Warner, D-Va., Steve Daines, R-Mont., Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill., John Cornyn, R-Texas, and Bill Cassidy, R-La., is a companion bill to H.R. 5262, introduced in November by Rep. Mike Thompson, D-Calif..The bill has four key provisions:Create separate statutory...

WASHINGTON - O&P stakeholders plan to use a recent massive fraud takedown involving medically unnecessary knee and back braces to advance upcoming legislation.The American Orthotic & Prosthetic Association has been trying to get legislation passed for several years that would curb fraud and abuse, and improve access to clinically appropriate care for beneficiaries.“It's great to see this first wave of charges,” said Todd Eagen, president of the Orthotic Prosthetic Group of America. “I...