On July 19, 2021, UnitedHealthcare (UHC) Medicare Advantage announced their continued expansion of telehealth access, including temporarily waiving the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) originating site requirements. UHC will extend the expansion of telehealth access for in-network and out-of-network providers I hope you found this article helpful. Thank you for being a Gold Member!

UnitedHealthcare (UHC) has announced they have once again extended coverage of outpatient physical, occupational and speech therapy services delivered via telehealth for their Medicare Advantage beneficiaries. UHC will cover all in-network and out-of-network outpatient therapy telehealth services as outlined Thank you for being a Gold Member!

On March 1, 2021, I published an article titled “Supervision Requirements of Therapy Students Under the Medicare Program“. This article specifically addressed traditional Medicare. Of course, that article then led to questions regarding the supervision requirements of therapy students treating Medicare Advantage patients and do the traditional Medicare supervision requirements apply to Medicare Advantage plans. In this article, I will answer that question. QuestionDo the traditional Medicare supervision requirements of therapy students also apply to Medicare Advantage plans and their respective beneficiaries? Answer I hope this answer has helped you. Thank you for being a Gold Member!

Lately, I have been receiving questions from providers who are not contracted with Medicare Advantage plans and who want to know if they can evaluate and treat those patients and charge them cash. In this article, I will answer the following questions: I’m enrolled in the Medicare program as a participating provider and not enrolled with the Medicare Advantage (MA) plan. The MA plan does have out-of-network (OON) benefits. Must I submit a claim to the MA carrier and are there limitations in how much I can charge the patient? I’m enrolled in the Medicare program as a non-participating provider

While we wait for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to add physical therapists, occupational therapists, and speech-language pathologists as telehealth providers for outpatient therapy services, a question I am receiving is how does this relate to Medicare Advantage plans. What you need to remember is that traditional Medicare and Medicare Advantages plans are not the same. Regarding Medicare Advantage plans and do they pay for telehealth services for outpatient physical, occupational and speech therapy services is Medicare Advantage plan specific. You must contact each insurance carrier to see if they have expanded telehealth services to include outpatient

UnitedHealthcare Medicare Advantage has updated their coverage summary for speech generating devices with an effective date of February 18, 2020. To access the updated clinical policy, click HERE. Thank you for being a Gold Member!

Since January 1, 2019, facilities that provide post-acute care inpatient services have been required to request prior authorization and receive a pre-service determination before UnitedHealthcare (UHC) Medicare Advantage Plan members can be admitted to a post-acute care facility or a post-acute care bed in one of the following types of facilities: Acute Inpatient Rehabilitation Skilled Nursing Facilities Long-term Acute Care Hospitals Critical Access Hospitals that provide post-acute services Beginning on October 1, 2019, UHC will

On April 5, 2019, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) issued the final rule for Medicare Advantage (MA) program (Part C) regulations and Prescription Drug Benefit program (Part D) regulations for calendar year 2020. In this final rule, CMS is implementing several sections of the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018. One of the sections CMS is implementing is Section 50323 that will allow MA plans to offer “additional telehealth benefits” as part of the government-funded “basic benefits”. Will these “additional telehealth benefits” include physical therapists (PTs), occupational therapists (OTs) and speech-language pathologists (SLPs)? Continue reading to find out.