Together with 30+ clinical organizations in cardiology, podiatry and diabetology, the Alliance co-signed a letter to Congress supporting the Amputation Reduction and Compassion Act of 2023. Each year, more than 150,000 amputations are performed in the US to remove toes, legs or feet affected by advanced peripheral artery disease (PAD). This legislation would help reduce these preventable amputations by requiring Medicare, Medicaid, and plans sold on the federal healthcare exchanges to fully cover screening tests for beneficiaries who are at-risk of PAD. Early diagnosis and intervention can restore blood flow to affected limbs and reduce the risk of amputation. Originally introduced in 2021 (see full text) and reintroduced in June 2023, this legislation includes provisions to:

• Increase access to diagnostics aimed at identifying conditions that can lead to amputation by providing coverage for PAD screenings of at-risk beneficiaries in Medicare and Medicaid;
• Require the development of quality metrics among payers and facilities that can prevent amputations; and
• Provide access to amputation prevention services through the development of a voluntary pilot program, including through patient risk medication and management approaches, early screening and detection, ongoing surveillance, testing, and more.

See letter below. 

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