Treatment class · subcategory · California
Orthotics denials at external review
When a California health plan denied care in the orthotics class and the enrollee took it to Independent Medical Review, this is what independent physician reviewers decided.
80.0%
- Overturned
- 36 of 45
- Era
- 2021-2025
- Jurisdiction
- California DMHC IMR
- Published class
- Orthotics
- Median days to decision
- 35
- All years
- 68.9% of 132
What reviewers relied on
3 validated codesCalifornia requires each published decision to carry “a detailed case summary that includes the specific standards, criteria, and medical and scientific evidence, if any, that led to the case decision” (Health & Safety Code § 1374.33(h)(1)(K)). These are the elements our extraction found in this class, split by how the decision came out.
| What the reviewer relied on | In overturns | In upholds |
|---|---|---|
| the FDA label or approval status | 0%n=36 | — |
| a standardised level-of-care instrument | 0%n=36 | — |
| a California statutory definition | 0%n=36 | — |
Read as description, not instruction. These are patterns in what reviewers wrote, not steps to follow, and no combination of them predicts an outcome. Only codes that cleared the validation gate appear — thirteen did not.
By condition
computed- Overturned — the reviewer did not sustain the denial
- Upheld — the reviewer sustained the denial
- Foot80.6%31
- Orthopedic & musculoskeletal—8
- CNS & neuromuscular—2
- Cancer—1
- Endocrine & metabolic—1
- Genetic disease—1
- Pediatrics—1
The specific conditions inside this class
below n=30, no rate is claimed- Foot/Toe Pain—8
- Other—8
- Plantar Fascitis—8
- Pes Planus/Flat Feet—6
- Joint Problem/Pain—3
- Deformities—2
- Paralysis—2
- Bunion—1
By review type
computed- Medical Necessity85.7%42
- Experimental/Investigational—3
Medical-necessity review asks whether the care is needed. Experimental/investigational review asks whether it is likely to be more beneficial than standard therapy — a harder statutory test, and the rates show it.
Every figure on this page is conditional on a denial having reached external review. Fewer than 1% of denials are appealed internally at all, so this describes denials that were fought to the end — not denials in general — and it describes California only. Who this does not cover.
Free help, first: the California DMHC Help Center files your Independent Medical Review at no cost — 1-888-466-2219, dmhc.ca.gov.