Vol.5, No.4

May 2000

Academy & AOPA Join in Second Issue
of Citizens Petition on Cranial Helmets

Cranial Helmets Task Force Chair Thomas V. DiBello, CO, FAAOP, describes the Academy as AOPA's "silent partner" in fighting the Food & Drug Administration's ruling on Classification of Cranial Devices. "Our efforts have primarily been behind the scene. We're whipping up support for fighting FDA on this important issue by asking our members and their referral sources to write letters to James Dillard. It has virtually shut down the use of passive helmets."

The first Citizens Petition was filed in March to classify protective helmets as Class I devices and exempt them from 510(k) requirements, but has not received a response. (Responses to Citizens Petitions are part of a formal process and are legally binding.)

The second petition is underway and will seek a distinction between passive devices and dynamic ones as described in the regulations. As part of the distinction, the petition seeks to have passive helmets classified as Class I devices which are the least regulated, requiring that manufacturers register with the FDA, list their devices, and follow Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP). AOPA reports that almost all O&P products have been determined to be Class I devices.

Cranial helmets are currently classified as Class II devices, which requires special controls determined individually for each device. Cranial orthoses used for plagiocephaly are Class II devices and are not exempt from the requirement to file a 510(k) notice.

Academy Delivers Petition in Opposition of
O&P Included in HCFA Competitive Bidding Project

Immediately following the Board's approval of an advocacy policy in San Diego (see April issue of Academician), a strongly worded letter was sent to HCFA Administrator Nancy-Ann DeParle. The letter decried the inclusion of orthotic services in the second HCFA Competitive Bidding Project and emphasized the Academy's position that orthotic and prosthetic services should not be lumped in the same category as durable medical equipment (DME) - a mistake made by many regulators and third party payers alike.

The HCFA project, set for San Antonio this year, will cover "non-customized orthotic devices, including off-the-shelf items such as braces and splints" in addition to oxygen supplies, hospital beds, manual wheelchairs, and albuterol sulfate and other nebulizer drugs. Although HCFA initially announced the project would not include custom orthotics, AOPA's Coding Committee found many custom orthotic codes in the listing and pointed out this error in a letter to HCFA's Mark Wynn. A final listing of selected codes for the project will be posted later this month on HCFA's website (www.hcfa.gov). HCFA is holding a bidders conference, Tuesday, May 16, in San Antonio. The Academy will continue to monitor the situation and work toward a meaningful change in the proposed bidding project.

Enclosed with the Academy's letter was a petition with several hundred signatures of practitioners against including professional orthotic healthcare services in any HCFA competitive bidding project.

Academy Offers Summer Solutions to Obtaining PCE Credits

Following the announcement at the Annual Meeting in San Diego to work towards offering as much as one-third of PCE credits without the hassles of travel, the Academy released its summer program of distance learning sessions. ACES and PAWES programs are scheduled phone conferences (or phone plus internet) which allow the individual to listen to the speaker from their home or office, and participate by asking (live) questions of the speaker. The one-price-per-site policy allows members to invite others to participate at no extra charge. NOTE: The scheduled times in the evening for each of these events is the direct result of member suggestions. Members may earn 1.5 PCE credits from each of these offerings:

• ACES (audio program), 6:30 pm (EDT) Tuesday, June 20 - Ethics and Legal Issue, Part II: Facts Every Practitioner Should Know. Back by popular demand, Ron Scott, JD, PT, OCS, adds to his sold-out first session with a 90-min conference by phone. Live questions from the listening audience made the first session a particularly meaningful program.





• ACES 7:30 pm (EDT) Tuesday, August 2 - Motivating Employees and Patients. Russ Hornfisher will delight you with more than a dozen successful ideas to convince patients to follow instructions, and motivate your staff to peak performance. 90-min by phone.





• PAWES (PowerPoint presentation combined with audio by phone) 7:00 pm (EDT) Tuesday, August 22 - Symposium on Orthotic Treatment of Spinal Cord Injury. A 90-minue session by Ed Ayyappa, MS, CPO, FAAOP on the development of SCI ambulation (bilateral KAFOs, Bologna Boot, and Reciprocating Gait Braces), the status of current work, and potential of orthotic design combined with instrumented gait analysis for improving functional ambulation. He will also present clinical test data on RGO designs, task-oriented designs, and SCI patients who have been fitted and completed a comprehensive rehab program.

FREE Benefit for Members       

How to Protect Your Life Savings from High Cost of Long-Term Care

Consider this - a typical stay in a nursing facility costs between $40,000 to $100,000 per year, lasts an average of 3.1 years and affects four out of every ten Americans age 65 and older. At-home care, a popular alternative, is also expensive, currently averaging $36,000 per year. And don't underestimate inflation. The Government Accounting Office estimates these expenses could triple in the next 20 years.

To compound the problem, neither Medicare, Medigap, nor major medical insurance will pay the cost of most long-term care. Medicaid - the federal/state welfare program that finances health care for the poor - will pay, but there's a catch. To qualify, you have to spend down your income and assets to the poverty level. In most states, you'll qualify for food stamps before you qualify for Medicaid.

Are Your Retirement Dreams at Risk?

Will the likely expense of long-term care poses a threat to your financial security? When it comes to paying for long-term care, you have three options. You can either pay for it yourself out of personal savings, let the government pay for it through welfare, or transfer the risk to an insurance company. Which of these strategies makes the most sense for you depends on your net worth (that is, your assets minus your liabilities) and the status of your health, both mental and physical.

Here's a general rule-of-thumb: If you're relatively healthy and have (or anticipate having) a net worth between $100,000 and $2 million, you should seriously consider long-term care coverage. Those with less will likely deplete their assets and qualify for Medicaid. Those with more may be able to pay for quality care with their own money.

Most people purchase long-term care coverage to avoid burdening their family and to protect hard-earned assets. Assuring access to the highest quality care in the setting of one's choice is also important. An increasing number of adult children are purchasing coverage for their aging parents.

How does a typical policy work? Basically, you pay a premium - which is based on your age when you apply - and agree to a background check of your health. In exchange (assuming you're eligible), you receive a "pool of benefits." These benefits become available to you if (1) you need long-term care in the future and (2) you meet the requirements (known as "benefit triggers") in your policy.

With long-term care coverage, you can design a plan to fit your needs and budget. To do so, you select a "benefit period" (the length of time the insurer will pay for your care); a "daily benefit" (the maximum amount per day the insurer will pay); and an "elimination period" or deductible (the number of days you agree to pay at the beginning of a claim). You also can include an option to protect against inflation, which automatically increases your daily benefit each year.

New Academy Benefit Protects Member's Life Savings

The Academy is offering Long-Term Care Quote™ - a free quote service to help individuals find the most practical, affordable solutions to protect themselves or their loved ones against the high cost of long-term care. Members receive a detailed comparison of the top three long-term care policies for their personal circumstances. The information includes details on the companies, policies, a personalized premium quote, and a free consumer guidebook. No sales person will call. Your information is not turned over to any insurance company as a sales lead. Long-Term Care Quote™ (LTCQ) is a national research center and independent agency specializing in long-term care insurance information. Their consumer service has been recommended in Consumer's Digest, Kiplinger's Personal Finance, Forbes, Mature Outlook and many other respected publications. It has also been featured on NBC's The Early Today Show.

LTCQ - the first service of its kind - operates a computerized database that compares the features and prices of the nation's top long-term care policies. Upon a member's request, LTCQ will send a complete information kit and personalized quote on three top-rated policies, selected based on information provided by the member. There is no cost or obligation for this service. Additionally, Academy members save money over identical policies because of a special member discount available exclusively for Academy members, their parents and in-laws.

To request a free, no-obligation information kit and personalized quote, simply call toll-free 1-800-587-3279. To obtain your free quote on long term care insurance matched precisely to your individual circumstances, visit www.ltcq.net.

Chapters Asked to Help With Nominations & Awards

The Academy Awards program and Officer and Director nominations were different this year thanks to help from the Academy's 15 chapters. William W. Schumann, CPO, immediate past president and chair of the Nominating Committee, wanted to "get as much input from as many sources as possible" in the selection of candidates for nomination. He put out the call to chapter presidents to ask their Boards for names of individuals as potential nominees for positions or award recipients. "I was pleased with the results," Schumann said. "We heard from several chapters. Consequently, I think the committee was able to do a better job this year in its selection of nominees."

Have you seen the Academy's Care & Use Guides
and Patient Care booklets?

For the Above-Knee Amputee For the Below- Knee Amputee Lower-Limb Orthoses Plastic Ankle-Foot Orthosis

For more information, visit the Academy's Publications section.
 

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