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01/20/25

New Evaluation When Patient Changes Insurance

As we begin the new year, some of your patients who began therapy prior to January 1, 2025 will have a different insurance for dates of service on and after January 1, 2025. That leads to a frequent question I receive. When a patient switches insurance during an episode of outpatient therapy, is a new evaluation required? In this article, I will answer the following questions:

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12/21/24

Congress Passes Legislation Impacting Outpatient Therapy in 2025

The United States House of Representatives and United States Senate have passed the “American Relief Act, 2025“. This legislation includes and excludes provisions that will impact outpatient physical, occupational, and speech therapy services in calendar year 2025. In this article, I will provide answers to the following questions:

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12/14/24

2026 Outpatient Therapy Regulatory and Payment Updates

This 1.5-hour online course will provide participants with regulatory and payment changes that will impact outpatient physical, occupational and speech therapy services in calendar year 2026.

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11/18/24

Medicare 2025 Deductibles and Premiums Announced

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has announced the 2025 Medicare Part A and Part B premiums and deductibles. In this article, I will provide you with what the premiums and deductibles are for 2025 and how the Medicare beneficiaries Part B deductible can impact the annual therapy threshold dollar amount dependent upon was the deductible met before or after they received outpatient physical, occupational and/or speech therapy services. In this article, I will answer the following questions:

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11/04/24

Medicare Payments for Outpatient Therapy in 2025

On November 1, 2024, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) released the calendar year (CY) 2025 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS) final rule. This final rule does have regulatory and reimbursement implications for outpatient physical, occupational, and speech therapy provided in all outpatient therapy settings. In this article, I will provide my members with the estimated payment amounts for calendar year 2025 for the more common CPT codes billed in outpatient physical, occupational and speech therapy compared to the 2024 payment rate for each CPT code. For my examples, I used the national payment averages for each CPT

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08/01/24

CMS Releases FY 2025 SNF Final Rule

On July 31, 2024, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) released the fiscal year (FY) 2025 Skilled Nursing Facility (SNF) final rule. Highlights of the final rule include the following: To access the FY 2025 SNF Final Rule Fact Sheet, click HERE. To access the complete FY 2025 SNF final rule, click HERE.

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07/22/24

Medicare Estimated Payments for Outpatient Therapy in 2025

On July 10, 2024, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) released the calendar year (CY) 2025 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS) proposed rule. This proposed rule does have regulatory and reimbursement implications for outpatient physical, occupational, and speech therapy provided in all outpatient therapy settings. In this article, I will provide my members with the estimated payment amounts for calendar year 2025 for the more common CPT codes billed in outpatient physical, occupational and speech therapy compared to the 2024 payment rate for each CPT code. For my examples, I used the national payment averages for each CPT

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06/17/24

Does Medicare’s 8-Minute Rule Apply to Inpatient Acute Care Therapy Services?

If a Medicare beneficiary is admitted into the hospital and receives therapy services as an inpatient, Medicare’s 8-minute rule does

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