Do you work in a skilled nursing facility (SNF) or a Swing Bed organization. Are you in a management role in a SNF or Swing Bed organization? Do you know how to find the latest news, references and manuals, training, and FAQs applicable to the SNF and Swing Bed settings? If you answered yes to one or both of the first 2 questions and no to the last question, this article will help you immensely. This article will provide links to the latest news impacting the SNF and Swing Bed settings, references and manuals pertaining to MDS 3.0 Provider User’s

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has awarded Jurisdiction 8 (states of Indiana and Michigan) to the incumbent Medicare Administrative Contractor, Wisconsin Physician Services. To read the transmittal from CMS, click HERE.

Do you want to know how your hospital compares to other hospitals? Check out the latest Hospital Compare data that was updated on February 28, 2019 by clicking HERE.

Effective for dates of service on and after January 1, 2018, there were 2 new modifiers that providers of outpatient physical, occupational and speech therapy may be required to use with some insurance carriers, such as Affordable Care Act (ACA) compliant plans, to distinguish whether the service provided was rehabilitative in nature or habilitative in nature. The new modifiers replaced the SZ modifier for habilitative services, unless instructed otherwise by an insurance carrier. The 2 new modifiers that became effective January 1, 2018 are Modifier 96 and Modifier 97. What are the definitions of each modifier and when would you

UnitedHealthcare Commercial has updated their coverage determination guideline (CDG) for Habilitative Services and Outpatient Rehabilitation Therapy with an effective date of February 1, 2019. This updated CDG impacts habilitative services provided by physical therapists, occupational therapists and speech-language pathologists. To access the updated CDG, log into your Gold Member account and click

UnitedHealthcare Commercial has updated their medical policy for Cognitive Rehabilitation with an effective date of March 1, 2019. This updated medical policy impacts cognitive rehabilitation services provided by physical therapists, occupational therapists and speech-language pathologists. To access the updated medical policy, log into your Gold Member account and click

For those of you that work with patient’s who have had a lower and/or upper extremity amputation and now must be fitted and trained in the use of a prosthesis, we do not fully understand what interventions, training and education we provide that are included as part of prosthetic training (CPT codes 97761 and 97763). In this article, I will teach you what services and interventions you provide are included in prosthetic training and provide you with a critical reference to support my answer that you will want to have at your disposal to educate insurance carriers and/or to use

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has released updated skilled nursing facility (SNF) provider feedback reports. The data contained within the Preview Reports is based on quality data submitted by SNFs during the following quarterly timeframes: Quarter 3 – 2017 to Quarter 2 – 2018 data Application of Percent of Residents Experiencing One or More Falls with Major Injury (Long Stay) (#0674) Percent of Residents or Patients with Pressure Ulcers That Are New or Worsened (Short Stay) (NQF #0678) Application of Percent of Long-Term Care Hospital Patients with an Admission and Discharge Functional Assessment and a Care Plan That