Optos is holding us hostage!!

**bkeyeguy** · 07-26-2013, 10:13 AM

I purchased, (capital equipment not the click fee) an optomap, it came with a 2 year service agreement. I am at the end of my service agreement and was faxed a "renewal" from optos. It is $5000 per year to keep service on this machine. After paying $80k two years ago!!
Unfortunately, most insurances, VSP especially will not allow you to charge the patient an additional fee for optomap nor can you bill in the majority of the cases. (although in some you can) I made the decision to sell the machine to a doctor who would see more medical cases than I do only to find out that if I sell my machine, even though I own it outright, they would effectively "lockout" the new owner until they pay what they call a "re certification fee" of $24k!! Which obviously no one would want to do after paying for the machine. I spoke with several used equipment dealers and Optos directly and this is factual. Is anyone else experienced this?

**Fezz** · 07-26-2013, 10:14 AM

Caveat emptor!

**King of the Lab** · 07-26-2013, 10:18 AM

That's insane. We have an Optomap and we charge 39$ for the regular test. We bill a "plus" picture (fundus photography) to patients regular health insurance. (115$) But a re-certification fee sounds ridiculous. Almost as bad as what Microsoft was gonna do to the Xbox ONE, and their used game re-certification debacle.

**bkeyeguy** · 07-26-2013, 10:28 AM

Do you mandate that everyone has optomap or it is optional??

**tx11** · 07-26-2013, 10:33 AM

wow

**King of the Lab** · 07-26-2013, 11:10 AM

Originally Posted by bkeyeguy

Do you mandate that everyone has optomap or it is optional??

Optional of course.

**OHPNTZ** · 07-27-2013, 08:58 PM

Originally Posted by bkeyeguy

I purchased, (capital equipment not the click fee) an optomap, it came with a 2 year service agreement. I am at the end of my service agreement and was faxed a "renewal" from optos. It is $5000 per year to keep service on this machine. After paying $80k two years ago!!
Unfortunately, most insurances, VSP especially will not allow you to charge the patient an additional fee for optomap nor can you bill in the majority of the cases. (although in some you can) I made the decision to sell the machine to a doctor who would see more medical cases than I do only to find out that if I sell my machine, even though I own it outright, they would effectively "lockout" the new owner until they pay what they call a "re certification fee" of $24k!! Which obviously no one would want to do after paying for the machine. I spoke with several used equipment dealers and Optos directly and this is factual. Is anyone else experienced this?

80 k for what? Something that takes peripheral pictures of the temporal retina? Not an attack on you, but you could get an OCT for that much...

**fjpod** · 07-28-2013, 04:32 AM

never did like the Optos business model. sorry you're learning the hard way. you will have to lower your price to sell it.

**Rialeigh** · 07-28-2013, 07:27 AM

I do not particularly like the Optos either, but it does have a wider field of view than most OCT's. That being said we have had minimal reimbursements from OCT FAF scans and there are so few diagnosis codes you can use the Anterior seg or Corneal scans.

**optimensch** · 07-28-2013, 07:45 AM

FWIW I think a good standard retinal camera for 25k is a better choice, has a good wow factor for patients, educational, and for proper retinal screening (peripheral) a dilated exam with a BIO is still the way to go anyway.