What Are Diabetic Shoes?

A "diabetic shoe" is any shoe that is recommended for people who have diabetes. Even though there is not an official industry standard, shoe manufacturers use the guidelines as set forth by Medicare in order to identify a "diabetic shoe". Those standards include a shoe that has a breathable upper, removable foot beds, extra deep toe box, a lace or Velcro closure, and availability of three widths including medium, wide, and extra-wide. Diabetic shoes are dispensed or sold by some podiatrists, certified pedorthists, some pharmacies, some medical equipment providers, and some shoe stores, as well as through catalogs and the Internet.

As with all shoe fitting, it is always best to have the diabetic shoe fitting performed by a qualified shoe fitter who has access to a large inventory of brands, styles, sizes, and widths. For example, some podiatrists, drug stores, etc. will dispense diabetic shoes without having access to an adequate inventory. This can be problematic because (1) the person or persons fitting the shoes have little or no training and/or experience in evaluating foot shape and size in relation to the available footwear styles therefore leading to improperly fit shoes, (2) the facility has little or no shoe inventory which delays and impedes the process of determining proper style, size, and width of the shoes (3) the limited selection also increases the probability of unsatisfactory wear and fit-related problems in situations where these are critical health-related issues.

Our store is able to provide diabetic shoe fittings through Medicare, Medicaid, and various other insurances, or you may purchase using cash, check, VISA, MasterCard, Discover, and debit card. We will soon be adding a diabetic footwear page to our web site which will feature some of the diabetic shoe styles that we offer including styles from Hush Puppies, New Balance, Propet, P.W. Minor, Canfield, Drew, Pedors, and others.