Question: Taking out an ankle joint replacement. If I have to clean up bone spurs around an ankle joint and take out an ankle joint that was put in, can I bill for the spur removal and the ankle joint implant removal, and if so, what codes can I bill?

Response from Codinghelpline.com:

Removing bone spurs to remove an ankle implant is secondary to the primary procedure. Bill only CPT 27704- Removal of ankle implant. The only possibility of billing bone spur removal would be if those bone spurs were unrelated to the ankle joint removal.

—David J Freedman, DPM, CPC, CSFAC, CPMA

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What a Global Conference Revealed About the Future of Healing

We can image wounds with artificial intelligence, manipulate the wound microenvironment, engineer sophisticated tissue matrices, and deploy technologies that would have seemed unimaginable just a decade ago. Yet, despite these advances, one uncomfortable question remains: Are we getting better at treating wounds, or are we truly getting better at healing patients?

Walking away from the recent World Union of Wound Healing Societies (WUWHS) conference held Sept 23-26, 2026, in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, I was struck not only by the breadth of scientific innovation presented but also by an equally important undercurrent woven throughout the program: the need to reconnect technological progress with the realities of the patient experience. Perhaps the next great advancement in wound care won’t come from what we put on a wound, but from rethinking everything that happens around it.

—Windy Cole, DPM, CWSP

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I’m interested in expanding my professional partnerships in my area. This is about establishing a network of complementary medical providers (not necessarily just DPMs) who can share information, make patient and/or supplier referrals when appropriate, and so on. Does anyone have any advice about how best to get started with this and anything I should consider as I go?

—Name Withheld

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In the October 13, 2026, MGMA Stat poll, 62 percent of medical practice leaders said yes, they feel burned out in their job. Another 22 percent said “somewhat,” and 16 percent said no. The poll had 418 applicable responses. Taken together, 84 percent reported at least some degree of burnout.

The same question in June 2018 drew 45 percent “yes” and 28 percent “somewhat,” a combined 73 percent. The “yes” share is 17 points higher this year; the “no” share is 11 points lower.

Each group got a different follow-up: the burned-out were asked what's driving it, the somewhat-burned-out what would help, and the rest what has worked.

Source: MGMA Stat

For generations, physicians have focused on the next patient and left policy and the business of medicine to others. Michael Verdon, DO, a neurosurgeon in Dayton, Ohio, believes that model is approaching a turning point. After watching threatened Medicare cuts get pushed out to the next congressional budget fight, last year they stopped getting pushed.

“Every year there was going to be a cut, and it never happened. They just kept kicking, and they’ve stopped doing that,” said Dr. Verdon. “A lot of people like me aren’t really, quote unquote, ‘worried.’ … I think we should be worried.”

With CMS’ final 2027 physician fee schedule expected in early November and the mandatory Ambulatory Specialty Model set to launch Jan. 1, 2027, Dr. Verdon said spine, orthopedic and ASC physicians who wait for policy to land on their desks will spend the next year reacting to it.

“It’s much more effective to be proactive than reactive,” he said.

Source: Becker’s ASC

Do you have an employee who frequently has their feelings hurt, who seems to take everything personally, or who is prone to tears? Do you replay scenes from work in your head at night, beating yourself up for not handling or anticipating things better, or for making an honest mistake? Or do you or your employees find yourselves feeling hurt, embarrassed, or betrayed by a careless remark, a funny look, or the least bit of criticism? If so, you would all benefit greatly from having a thicker skin.

Priced below appraisal. Established hospital-campus practice with strong referrals and 25,000 patient records. Fully equipped with digital X-ray and EMR. Staff staying on. Open four days, with demand for five. Retiring physician will assist with transition. A rare turnkey opportunity. Confidential inquiries: [email protected]

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