Skin Substitutes Patient Story – Texas

Patient M was an 88-year-old woman in San Antonio, Texas, living with dementia and the after-effects of a stroke. Homebound and unable to attend regular doctors' visits, her last recorded primary care appointment was in the spring of 2023. By early 2025, she developed several pressure wounds on her lower back and hips, a common complication in patients with limited mobility.

In the months that followed, a series of claims were submitted to Medicare showing she received 12 skin substitute graft procedures in less than a month, across multiple providers. The reported wound sizes were nearly 25 times larger than typical pressure ulcers, and the total cost exceeded $9.85 million. Patient M transitioned to hospice care and passed away shortly after. The scale, cost, and frequency of these billed procedures fall far outside the accepted standards of care.

Despite these aggressive interventions, there was no evidence that her wounds improved during this time. She transitioned to hospice and passed away shortly after.