DIABETES

Insurace coverage is   available to help obtain   footwear for people with   diabetes and foot complications   You will need:   Two forms

PROTECTING THE AT-RISK FOOT

If you have medical insurance and are diagnosed with diabetes and foot complications, you may have coverage for therapeutic footwear at little or no out-of-pocket or up-front cost.

• Protecting at-Risk Feet
• Therapeutic Shoe Benefit
• About Boston Pedorthic
• Getting Started
• Resources

Protecting At-Risk Feet
People with diabetes, who are diagnosed by their doctor to have complications of neuropathy and circulatory deficiencies face the risk of developing lesions on their feet. Lesions become infections that easily escalate and progress to amputations. A major contributing risk-factor is footwear that causes excessive shear and compressive forces to occur on the weight-bearing foot.

Diabetes-associated lower extremity amputations comprised 70.2% of all lower extremity amputations performed in Massachusetts from 2002 through 2004, according to Massachusetts Department Public Health.

A primary strategy for protecting the feet of people with diabetes is to provide therapeutic footwear. Therapeutic shoes are professionally fitted to accommodate custom molded insoles, and provide a safe environment for the feet, especially in the toe area. Custom molded insoles evenly distribute pressures across the weight-bearing (plantar) surface of the foot.

Therapeutic Shoe Benefit (TSB) for Persons with Diabetes and Complications
In May 1993, Congress amended Medicare statutes to provide partial reimbursement for depth shoes, custom molded shoes, and shoe inserts or orthopedic modifications to qualifying Medicare Part B patients with diabetes. Most insurers and HMOs provide coverage for diabetic footwear.

In order to qualify, you must have a diagnosis of diabetes with at least one of the following conditions:

• History of partial or complete amputation of the foot
• History of previous foot ulceration
• History of pre-ulcerative callus
• Peripheral neuropathy with evidence of callus formation
• Foot deformity
• Poor circulation

About Boston Pedorthic
At Boston Pedorthic your feet and how footwear can help them is our “sole” concern. Board Certified Pedorthists are credentialed as C.Peds, who are clinically trained shoe specialists, knowledgeable in anatomy & physiology, lower-extremity biomechanics, and disorders affecting the feet and gait. What’s more, experienced pedorthists know shoe construction.

Whether it’s for casting and crafting a custom shoe, or cutting apart a shoe and building up an orthopedic modification, you can depend upon skilled hand work and expert decision-making.

Boston Pedorthic is accredited by the American Board for Orthotics, Prosthetics and Pedorthics and is a member of the Pedorthic Footwear Association and the Diabetes Coalition of Massachusetts.

Getting Started
Call (617) 787-8779 so that we can make the process easy for you. We will ask for the following:

• Your name
• Date of birth
• Phone number
• Insurance ID

For your appointment, you will need a doctor’s Prescription and a Statement of Certifying Physician, signed by an MD.

Boston Pedorthic Resources
Telephone (617) 787-8779
Facsimile (270) 747-8779

Contact Us
Finding Boston Pedorthic
What to Expect at Your Appointment

Other Resources

For People Living with Diabetes
Massachusetts Dept. of Health. Diabetes and Your Feet
Massachusetts Dept. of Health. Control Your Diabetes. For Life.
Massachusetts Dept. of Health. Diabetes Help-Finder Resource Directory
National Diabetes Information Clearinghouse (NDIC) Complications of Diabetes

For Healthcare Providers
Diabetes Coalition of Massachusetts (DCOM)
National Diabetes Information Clearinghouse (NDIC) Feet Can Last a Lifetime
Massachusetts Dept. of Health. Massachusetts Guidelines for Adult Diabetes Care.
Massachusetts Dept. of Health. Diabetes Prevention and Control Program (DPCP)

Diabetes and the Workplace
American Diabetes Association. Winning at Work
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. CDC's Diabetes Program - Diabetes Projects - Business and Diabetes

Become Involved
American Diabetes Association. What's Happening Locally?