AOPA Releases Below Statement Regarding Delivery of Orthoses through Lead Generation Marketing
ALEXANDRIA, VA – March 28, 2019 – The American Orthotic & Prosthetic Association (AOPA), announced that it is strongly opposed to the model for delivery of orthoses that relies on what is known as lead generation marketing to identify and recruit potential patients for treatment with orthoses.
Lead generation marketing uses broad stroke advertising such as television ads, websites, and social media to encourage potential patients to contact a call center which then provides the “leads” to a select group of physician referral sources and medical equipment suppliers who facilitate the delivery of one or more orthoses to the patient, often without the patient ever seeing the referring physician or the supplier of the device. This model of delivery is of great concern to AOPA as it does not include any fitting of the orthoses by health care professionals such as a certified and/or licensed orthotist. It also includes no patient education on the proper care and use of the orthosis, no follow up care to ensure that the orthosis is providing its intended benefit and lacks any kind of patient evaluation to determine the clinical appropriateness of the prescribed orthosis. This model of delivery is not one that is interested in the provision of clinically appropriate orthoses by properly trained, educated, and certified or licensed orthotic professionals. It is simply an opportunity for unscrupulous providers to take advantage of loopholes in the Medicare claims processing system to generate as much revenue as possible without regard to the medical need of the orthoses they are marketing. In addition, lead generation marketing of orthoses typically relies on a limited number of physician referral sources who often have no relationship with the patient prior to their brief consultation, usually over the telephone, upon referral from the lead generation company. These physicians are often fully aware of their role in this process and are often compensated by the lead marketing company on a per prescription basis. This practice is clearly not in the best interest of Medicare beneficiaries.
Recent reports published by the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (OIG) have confirmed that there have been increased instances of fraud and abuse involving knee and spinal orthoses. AOPA believes that lead generation marketing strategies may be a significant contributor to this increase in fraud and abuse investigations. The orthoses that have been highlighted in the OIG reports have shown significant increases in utilization since the first appearance of the online and televised advertisements produced by lead generating marketing companies. It is not a coincidence that the largest increases in Medicare spending for orthoses represent the high cost orthoses that are being marketed to unsuspecting Medicare beneficiaries.
AOPA firmly believes that Medicare beneficiaries deserve to receive the highest quality, most clinically appropriate orthotic care available and that it is in the best interest of the Medicare program to ensure that the delivery of all orthoses must be coordinated through the physician or practitioner who is treating the patient’s orthopedic condition and a properly trained and educated orthotic provider, such as a certified or licensed orthotist. Alternative models, such as those that use lead generation marketing, will continue to facilitate increased fraud and abuse, unnecessary costs and utilization, and the delivery of ill-fitting orthoses that may not be medically necessary without any clinical care, patient follow up, or patient education.
Questions? Please contact Joe McTernan, at 571/431-0811 or mailto:[email protected].
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American Orthotic & Prosthetic Association (AOPA)
330 John Carlyle Street, Suite 200
Alexandria, VA 22314
(571) 431-0808
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