.svg)
The Gap Between Clinical Trials and Real-World Chronic Wound Patients
Caroline Fife, M.D. highlights a concerning discrepancy between the characteristics of patients with chronic wounds in real-world settings and those selected for clinical trials.
All of us in wound care are struggling to understand the rationale for limiting patients to 4 applications of a skin substitute when the patients in the clinical trials used to rationalize “medically necessary” products (Group 2) were both healthier than “real world” patients and were given 10 or more applications to achieve closure.
Caroline Fife, M.D. highlights a concerning discrepancy between the characteristics of patients with chronic wounds in real-world settings and those selected for clinical trials. She stresses the potential implications this has for patient access to FDA approved treatments that have the potential to save limbs and lives. I think this is particularly apropos with the impending LCDs in CGS, First Coast, and Novitas.
Even if one were to ascribe to the theory that CMS does not have healing as it primary goal and instead is focused on cost containment, the costs of amputations and complications are likely far higher than more treatments. Once again Caroline’s blog is essential reading…
Read Caroline Fife, M.D.’s Blog The Realities of Chronic Wound Research here
Popular Posts
Categories
Avoiding wound care for free, a.k.a. surviving a “bad faith” audit.
Audits are meant to protect against fraud, but in wound care many providers are now facing aggressive “bad faith” audits driven by financial incentives and bias. This blog explores what’s behind the rise in these audits, their impact on patients and practitioners, and the steps providers can take to prepare, push back, and protect their practices.
The price patients will pay for the PFS
After a recent survey we conducted, it is clear most clinicians agreed skin substitutes are highly effective and essential, warning that the proposed rates would reduce patient access, hinder innovation, and threaten the viability of many practices. Read the blog to learn more about our findings.
The Case For Mobile Wound Care: An Essential Component Of Chronic Wound Management
Mobile wound care is a critical yet often misunderstood part of chronic wound management, providing advanced treatment to patients who can't easily access traditional care. Far from being a fringe service, it’s a large and growing field—with nearly 30,000 clinicians billing for mobile wound services in 2023 alone—and plays a key role in addressing the rising burden of chronic wounds, especially in nursing homes. As wound severity increases, staffing shortages persist, and the population ages, mobile providers are filling care gaps through high-volume, high-quality services and innovative tools like AI-assisted telehealth and near-infrared spectroscopy. To ensure better outcomes and lower healthcare costs, policymakers and payers must recognize mobile wound care as an essential, professional solution—not a peripheral one.
Venture Position on CMS and MAC Skin Substitute Proposals
Venture Medical, LCC is sharing our position on the CY2026 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule and our future recommendations.
How CMS Fudged the Math:
If we want reimbursement systems that reflect real-world care and outcomes, we need to speak up. The comment period is now open. Read the full breakdown from John Schroeder and Howard Walthall to learn more about how you can join the call for fair, evidence-based reimbursement.
