A SPIKE OF SPRINGTIME KNEE REPLACEMENTS? (Orthopedics This Week)
Is there going to be a spike of requests for knee replacement procedures in the U.S. this spring?
A top Wall Street orthopedic industry analyst asked recently if orthopedic device makers will benefit from the uncertainty of the Supreme Court’s upcoming King vs. Burwell arguments and decision about whether or not patients enrolled in the federal healthcare exchange qualify for premium subsidies.
Uncertainty of Coverage
Larry Biegelsen, Wells Fargo’s analyst, mused on February 3, 2015 whether or not the uncertainty of continued coverage will prompt patients in the federal exchange to rush to their surgeons and undergo elective knee replacement procedures before a court decision is announced in the summer of 2015. Knee replacement procedures, according to Biegelsen, tend to be more elective than hip or spinal procedures, so knee procedures are more likely to see a spike during the second quarter of 2015.
While not predicting how the Court will rule or whether procedures will spike, Biegelsen says there is a precedent as orthopedic procedures spiked in the last quarter of 2013 when patients dealt with the uncertainty of ...
