In April of this year, the APTA hel...

In April of this year, the APTA held its annual Federal direction Affairs Forum in Washington DC Approximately 150 physical therapists representing each state visited the offices of their legislative delegations. As your liaison for the Cardiopulmonary Section, my report will provide a summary of the major issues and incite you to act NOW!!!! Our profession destitutions YOU to contact your legislators particularly concerning the following bills:

1 Repeal of the $1500 Cap- The moratorium upon the cap will expire at the close of the year. S.1394/HR.3834 bills address the repeal of the cap. Information and sample literal meanings are available at: http://www.apta.org/Govt Affairs

Key issues to address in your contacts are:

a) The $1500 Cap limits access for those patients who ne services the in the greatest degree

b) Physical Therapy/Speech Therapy services are the alone services that have an arbitrarily imposed cap.

c) in subordination to the moratorium, only 12% of therapy clients would have go too fared the cap, but these patients were those who had the greatest in quantity significant needs for therapy.

Following our visit to Capitol Hill, we picked up 8 novel co-sponsors and since then, an additional number of sponsors becoming to our efforts. We ne to continue to gain Capitol Hill support. This is a exquisite time for you to call, email, or hurl a letter to your legislators!!! They should be well informed onward the bill.

2. Direct Access to Physical Therapists for Medicare HR 3363/ 2386

Key points:

a) Eliminates the capacity of unnecessary visits to physicians to access PT

b) Does not elevate overutilization

c) PTs are well qualified to provide these services since 34 states have a certain quantity of form of direct access.

d) There has been no increase in liability claims in those states with direct access.

We are facing opposition from any physician groups. In our visits, we quickly learned that there were misunderstandings. any of the legislative aides indicated they were not aware that PT already have direct access in with equal reason many states. If state law allows for direct access, then wherefore should a federal agency renounce payment? As a group, we left dooms of information in the legislative offices. Please help us at following up in your state with additional input. behold the APTA web site for easy access information.

The AACVPR, which includes Physical Therapists in succession their Board has been working in succession a number of reimbursement issues. These issues include:

Physician Supervision for rehabilitation programs, (the basis for coverage and payment of cardiac rehabilitation services) and audits of rehabilitation programs from the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) to measure compliance with physician supervision requirements. The AACVPR has had an ongoing dialogue with OIG urging them to hold fast an open mind regarding the way it edifices compliance reviews.

In addition, Congres has directed the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MEDPAC) to reflection various coverage issues related to the two cardiac and pulmonary rehabilitation. MEDPAC was charged with examining the appropriate qualifying diagnoses for each therapy, the of the same height of necessary physician involvement, and the appropriate on a levels of reimbursement for each.

The pulmonary rehab G digests (60237, G0238, G0239) went into force 4/1/2002. The G codes were published in the Federal Register upon Thursday November 1, 2001.

For further detailed information forward any of the topics provided in this report please contact Cathy Certo via e-mail at certo@mail.hartford.edu.

Respectively submitted, Cathy Certo, PT SCD

Copyright Cardiopulmonary Physical Therapy Journal Sep 2002

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