A common question I hear from readers of The Niche is some version of, “Is stem cell therapy covered by insurance?” Sometimes they also ask about Medicare coverage. To be clear, I’m talking about unproven stem cell “therapies” here. The type clinics sell. It’s not FDA approved so generally insurance companies and Medicare will not …
Is unproven stem cell therapy covered by insurance? Read More »
Stem cell injections at unproven clinics are expensive and unproven so a lot of patients have asked me if insurance covers stem cell therapy at clinics? Mostly the answer is “no”, but in rare cases there is some kind of coverage, mainly from employers that have inked some kind of deal with a stem cell …
Does insurance cover stem cell therapy at unproven clinics? Read More »
Patients ask me all the time about stem cell treatments. Some are curious. Some have already had treatments. Others are very seriously considering a treatment, but haven’t done so yet. Some are open-minded. Some are not. Some are angry with me for my track record of criticizing for-profit, unlicensed clinics offering stem cell treatments. In …
The big news broke Friday that the FDA approved two new gene therapies for sickle cell disease. While the approvals were expected and the actual use of these treatments will be complex on several levels, this is a historic development. 2 FDA-approved gene therapies for sickle cell Friday’s news follows on recent UK approval for …
How much does stem cell therapy cost in 2024? How have prices changed? To authoritatively answer these questions now we need data from the present and past along with expert perspectives. Some surprises come up in this new analysis. In this article Intro | Stem Cell Therapy Cost: $10,000-$20,000 | Why do stem cells cost so much? …
Unproven stem cell clinic firm US Stem Cell and many others are apparently facing potential malpractice lawsuits. How it came to light via US Stem itself is somewhat surprising. US Stem Cell and malpractice notice The news popped up in an SEC filing by US Stem Cell, which I wasn’t even sure was still active …
US Stem Cell says it & 10 others face malpractice suits Read More »
Does Medicare cover stem cell therapy? Readers of The Niche have regularly asked this question. They’re curious about insurance coverage too. The answer is “no” in almost every case, with some notable exceptions I’ll get to at the end of the post. Still, clinics appear to have already been charging Medicare for what collectively adds …
I wrote recently about how political pressure on FDA Commissioner Stephen Hahn in 2020 may have helped the Texas firm Direct Biologics move their product ExoFlo forward inside the agency. Today I analyze the ExoFlo Phase I clinical trial paper used in that push on Hahn to get the firm the IND for a Phase II …
Review of ExoFlo paper used to push Direct Biologics IND inside FDA finds red flags Read More »
When I’m asked about the most promising areas of stem cell clinical research, cell therapy for type I diabetes is near the top including work by a biotech called ViaCyte. Other firms are in the mix too, boosting the overall odds of success in the coming decade. It’s really that promising even though there are …
ViaCyte purchase puts Vertex in driver’s seat on stem cells for diabetes Read More »
The news just keeps getting worse for Missouri state lawmaker Patricia Derges, who was indicted last year by the feds for an alleged stem cell scheme. She is now also being sued by a former patient. Derges, who is not a physician but rather an assistant physician, was providing supposed stem cell or related biological …