2016 Medicare Deductible & Impact on Therapy Cap

As we enter a new calendar year, insurance benefits and deductibles will renew on January 1, 2016 for Medicare beneficiaries. A question I often receive is how does the Medicare Part B deductible impact the annual therapy cap dollar threshold for physical therapy and speech-language pathology services combined or the separate annual therapy cap dollar threshold for occupational therapy? In this article, I will provide the answers to the following questions:

1. What is the therapy cap dollar amount for 2016?
2. What is the Medicare Part B deductible for 2016?
3. How does the Part B deductible impact the 2016 therapy cap dollar amount?

Lets answer the first question. The therapy cap dollar amount for 2016 for physical therapy (PT) and speech-language pathology (SLP) services combined is