by Caroline Fife, M.D. | Jun 15, 2026 | Cellular / Tissue-Based Products, CTP / Skin Substitutes
Dr. Fife – It has recently come to my attention that several hospitals, physicians, and qualified healthcare professionals continue to report modifiers JZ and JW for the application of non‑BLA (Biologics License Application) skin substitute grafts, also referred to as...
by Caroline Fife, M.D. | Jun 12, 2026 | Cellular / Tissue-Based Products, CTP / Skin Substitutes
Hi Dr. Fife – I just finished reading your blog on whether audit activity will decline now that overall expenses have come down. It’s an interesting question and, on the surface, a reasonable assumption. In practice, though, the financial return is simply too strong,...
by Caroline Fife, M.D. | Jun 10, 2026 | Fight the Good Fight
Percent Area Reduction (PAR) is a concept that wound care practitioners have been talking about for decades as a predictor of wound healing/surrogate endpoint. Well, set aside what you think you know about PAR. Check out this excellent blog by Zweli Tunyiswa which...
by Caroline Fife, M.D. | Jun 8, 2026 | Cellular / Tissue-Based Products, CTP / Skin Substitutes
Check out attorney Knicole Emanuel’s recent blog post, written to wound care practitioners, “Medicare Auditors Are Not Wound Care Specialists: Why Providers Win Appeals When the Full Story Finally Gets Read”! Her post reinforces the reports I am hearing,...
by Caroline Fife, M.D. | Jun 3, 2026 | Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy
Every day, wound care practitioners see patients with life- and limb-threatening wounds. It’s a highly diverse group of patients because there’s almost no limit to the awful things that can happen to a person such as crush injuries, severe open fractures, amputations...
by Caroline Fife, M.D. | Jun 1, 2026 | Fight the Good Fight, Miscellaneous Musings
I must have been absent from medical school the day we learned about dystonia because there is a big blank space in my memory where any knowledge of that disorder should be. I didn’t know anything about it until two decades after medical school when my Mary, my dear...
by Caroline Fife, M.D. | May 29, 2026 | Fight the Good Fight
Starting July 1, 2026, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas (BCBSTX) will “enhance” its claims editing and review process for office, inpatient, and outpatient evaluation and management (E/M) services for patients in commercial BCBSTX plans. For dates of service on or...
by Caroline Fife, M.D. | May 18, 2026 | Cellular / Tissue-Based Products, CTP / Skin Substitutes
Last month, Dr. Ryan Mathis updated us on the legal initiative around CAMP (skin sub/CTP) pricing. The case, filed in the district court of the Northern District of Texas, was dismissed — not because the companies lost on the merits, but because the judge said...
by Caroline Fife, M.D. | May 12, 2026 | Fight the Good Fight
Dr. Fife, Thank you for the wonderful blog post by Drs. Melin and team: “Wrestling Armadillos”. I could not agree more on all points! I want to emphasize this statement: “…’the underlying reason for chronic wounds may be systemic’, a...
by Caroline Fife, M.D. | May 1, 2026 | Fight the Good Fight
The disconnect between the subjects enrolled in prospective clinical trials and patients in the real world has been an issue of concern for years. Dr. Marissa Carter and I first published on this in 2009 Advances in Skin & Wound Care. To over-simplify the problem...
