by Caroline Fife, M.D. | Mar 28, 2025 | Cellular / Tissue-Based Products, CTP / Skin Substitutes
Welcome to the Circus: The State of Healthcare in America | medicaidlaw-nc Attorney Knicole Emanuel has another blog post (yes, I am a big fan of her blog) about Medicare audits. She describes “compliance” as a “Kafkaesque masterpiece of government regulation.” The...
by Caroline Fife, M.D. | Mar 18, 2025 | Cellular / Tissue-Based Products, CTP / Skin Substitutes, Medicare Audits
Here’s a guest blog from Martha Kelso, Chief Regulatory Officer at Wound Care Plus, LLC, providing a heads-up about the documentation demands for her most recent audit of CTPs/CAMPs/skin substitutes – this time a UPIC audit. According to the Medicare Program Integrity...
by Caroline Fife, M.D. | Mar 17, 2025 | Cellular / Tissue-Based Products, CTP / Skin Substitutes
Check out Jeanne Pinder’s newest Clear Health Costs article about the “skin substitute” market. She interviewed practices that have raised serious concerns about skyrocketing wound care spending, including claims of $1 million per patient, with questionable benefit....
by Caroline Fife, M.D. | Mar 7, 2025 | Cellular / Tissue-Based Products, CTP / Skin Substitutes
Many of you are aware of a post on President Trump’s social media platform implying that the administration would bring an end to the skin substitute LCD(s) and suggesting that their implementation will lead to more DFU amputations. You can see the post on Jeanne...
by Caroline Fife, M.D. | Feb 12, 2025 | Cellular / Tissue-Based Products, CTP / Skin Substitutes
EDIT: Thank you to the medical sales rep who sent me my smile for the day with this message. “Would love to apply but the apply button does not work. Former [redacted] employee and medical equipment rep. Let me know or send me a link.” Thank you...
by Caroline Fife, M.D. | Feb 5, 2025 | Cellular / Tissue-Based Products, CTP / Skin Substitutes
Skin substitutes and possible danger: Is patient harm happening in wound care? Jeanne Pinder from Clear Health Costs has posted a powerful follow up article on the use of Cellular Tissue Products (CTPs) / skin substitutes. Ms. Pinder interviewed Dr. Danielle...
by Caroline Fife, M.D. | Feb 3, 2025 | Cellular / Tissue-Based Products, CTP / Skin Substitute Arrests, CTP / Skin Substitutes
Office of Public Affairs | Arizona Couple Pleads Guilty to $1.2B Health Care Fraud | United States Department of Justice The Department of Justice (DOJ) office of public affairs has announced that on October 24, 2024, Alexandra Gehrke pleaded guilty to conspiracy to...
by Caroline Fife, M.D. | Jan 29, 2025 | Cellular / Tissue-Based Products, CTP / Skin Substitutes
The delay of the LCD(s) is good news for many manufacturers since it will continue to enable unlimited use of amniotic products, some of which are priced around $5,000 per sq cm. (That’s more than a 3,000% increase in cost with no data to indicate any improvement in...
by Caroline Fife, M.D. | Jan 27, 2025 | Cellular / Tissue-Based Products, CTP / Skin Substitutes
Check out this article by investigative reporter Jeanne Pinder, CEO of Clear Health Costs, who set out to understand the cost of “skin substitutes.” Caroline Fife, M.D.Dr. Fife is a world renowned wound care physician dedicated to improving patient outcomes through...
by Caroline Fife, M.D. | Jan 25, 2025 | Cellular / Tissue-Based Products, CTP / Skin Substitutes
CMS has indeed delayed the implementation date for the Skin Substitute Grafts/ Cellular and Tissue-Based Products (CTP) for the Treatment of Diabetic Foot Ulcers and Venous Leg Ulcers LCDs from 2/12/25 to 4/13/25. The policies on the CMS website are now...
