Nov 14, 2006 Filed in:
MedicalHyperbaric Oxygen Therapy (HBOT) is quite useful for a number of conditions, though the medicare laws have a curious and unusual statement about HBOT: a non-covered conditions list. Most therapies' entries in the medicare laws don't even list covered conditions, so why does this specifically name 22 conditions as being "non-covered"? This is especially interesting because the 22 conditions are all clearly effectively treated by HBOT.
The last issue of Hyperbaric Medicine Today has an interesting article about how this happened. You can go read it yourself at http://www.hbomedtoday.com/PDF/HBOMT_8.pdf The article starts on page 7, you'll have to scroll down to it in the acrobat file yourself. Interesting reading.
If you'd like to read some information about HBOT by physicians who use it, try here. You can read a (relatively) short bibliography of research on HBOT here.
Here is the medicaid list of noncovered conditions:
1. Cutaneous, decubitus, and stasis ulcers
2. Chronic peripheral vascular insufficiency
3. Anaerobic septicemia and infection other than clostridial
4. Skin burns (thermal)
5. Senility
6. Myocardial infarction
7. Cardiogenic shock
8. Sickle cell anemia
9. Acute thermal and chemical pulmonary damage, i.e., smoke inhalation with pulmonary insufficiency
10. Acute or chronic cerebral vascular insufficiency
11. Hepatic necrosis
12. Aerobic septicemia
13. Nonvascular causes of chronic brain syndrome (Pick's disease, Alzheimer's disease, Korsakoff's disease)
14. Tetanus
15. Systemic aerobic infection
16. Organ transplantation.
17. Organ storage.
18. Pulmonary emphysema
19. Exceptional blood loss anemia
20. Multiple Sclerosis
21. Arthritic Diseases
22. Acute cerebral edema
As the author of the "noncovered conditions" list points out, there is no law against using HBOT for these conditions, they are merely off-label uses for HBOT. There are also articles about using HBOT for migraine and Lyme disease (which medicare presumably won't cover either, nor, by extension, would insurance companies). And since I have a special interest in MS, I dug up this page which is the beginning of a discussion on HBOT for MS.
Why do I take this interest in HBOT? I managed to get my hands on a modest chamber and have been looking into using it therapeutically.Tags: Hyperbarics, Insurance, Multiple Sclerosis
Apr 14, 2006 Filed in:
OfficeI've hired two great people to staff the front desk. They're answering the phones and calling back all the messages people have left for me.
So, you should be able to get a live person most of the time when you call, and if not a call back within a day. They've called back most of the old messages (except for things I specifically need to deal with), so if you haven't gotten a call back it must have gotten lost in the transition so give us another call.
I've also set up some more talks for the Summer, so check the events page for the updated listings.
Finally, with my being in the office 5 days a week now, I have appointments available in a much closer time frame, so no more month-long waits for new patients (at this point).
Mar 04, 2006 Filed in:
OfficeI've been making lots of changes recently: I'm changing the website (should look similar, but makes it much easier to keep up), my office (the closet is no more), and my work (I have been going up to Flint twice a week to help out at a clinic up there, but I've gotten too busy to continue doing that, and will cut that back starting in April).
The goal of all this is to improve the care I'm giving patients:
An easier website makes it more likely to be up to date.
A more open office is nicer and makes room for a reception station. The reception station means I'll be hiring some help to take some of the work off my shoulders (I can't answer the phone while I'm seeing patients, but if I'm booked solid the whole day, I get no time to check messages or schedule new patients, leading to absurdly long waits for people to get calls back).
Less time in Flint means more time at my office, so I'll finally have some openings to schedule the new patients who have been leaving me messages (I've been getting them, but haven't had openings to put new patients in).
Things are still hectic, but should be settling down soon (at least in geological time).
So, the take home message is that is you've tried to contact me and haven't gotten a response, I'm working on it and haven't forgotten you. Do realize, however, that I'm currently booking for a month from now.