Welcome to the Website of Drs.

Michael Zapf, DPM, Darren Payne, DPM

Lorie Robinson, DPM and Steve Benson, DPM

Thank you for visiting the web site of Drs. Zapf, Payne, Robinson and Benson all practicing in two offices in the Conejo Valley. Our practice name is the Agoura-Los Robles Podiatry Centers. We have combined over 60 years of experience to better serve our patients. Dr. Michael Zapf is mostly responsible for hte content of this web site.. This site is intended for the patients of The Conejo- Los Robles Podiatry Centers. If you are not a patient, you are still welcome to visit the site and learn what you can about your problem. But the doctors cannot assume any responsibility for your care and cannot offer you any medical advice. You need to see your own professional. Your problem may well be different from what you think it is, even with the help of this site. Please note that all information and photographs on this site are copyrighted by the Conejo - Los Robles Podiatry Centers and cannot be used for any private or commercial use.


08/07/2008HomeNews+FAQShock Wave

 

To Order Foot Supplies --> <-- click

            

 

Free Shoes!

Free Shoes?

Well, sorta. In a rare case of effective preventive medicine Medicare has decided to pay for a well fit pair of extra depth shoes to qualified Medicare recipients on an annual basis. To qualify for the shoes you must be under the care of an MD or Do for clinically diagnosed diabetes and have one of the following conditions:

bulletPrevious amputation of the other foot or a part of either foot or
bulletHistory of foot ulceration of either foot or
bulletHistory of "pre-ulcerative calluses of either foot or
bulletPeripheral neuropathy with evidence of callus formation of either foot or
bulletFoot deformity of either foot or
bulletPoor circulation in either foot

Our office does supply these shoes and we have a display of them in our Thousand oaks office and you can order a pair if you qualify. Most Medicare patients with diabetes do qualify but some do not and it takes an examination of your feet to determine which you are. We will contact the doctor treating your diabetes and request a prescription for the shoes. In actuality the request should start with the primary treating MD or DO and many times it does. But all too often your diabetes doctor is unaware that this program exists and only find out about it when you come to our office for care.

THERE IS FRAUD OUT THERE!

The ad at the right appeared in a newspaper in Arizona and is clearly fraudulent. The shoes are NOT FREE - Medicare patients are still required to pay for any co-payments and deductibles. The company placing this ad shows up at a location, asks for your shoe size and the name of your doctor and sends you the pair of shoes. These charlatans are not trained or in any way qualified to fit these shoes and provide only the cheapest alternatives available. The shoes are supposed to be custom fit to your foot with accurate measurements and accurate follow-up. With these fly-by-night companies there is cleraly no compliance to this standard of care. They do not measure your foot and clearly do not follow up if the shoe does not fit or is the wrong size. Free diabetic shoes are a lot like a free lunch.

 

 

 

   

 

 

 

 

 

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Copyright © 2000 Michael A. Zapf, D.P.M., F.A.C.F.A.S., F.A.C.F.AOA.M.
Last modified: August 07, 2008