PEPPER reports were issued last fall by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to highlight areas in which facilities are at risk for improper Medicare reimbursement. Have you accessed yours?

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As billing for therapy is interpreted by various agencies that review claims, the importance of strong communication cannot be understated. Shelly Mesure, author of the “Rehab Realities” column for McKnight’s Long-Term Care News, shares the “power words” that therapists should be using when they document for rehab services.

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Skilled nursing facilities have witnessed consistent growth in the utilization of rehabilitation services in past decades. As a guest columnist for McKnight’s Long-Term Care News, Mary Fran Thaler, PT, and Vice President of Administration for Hebrew Home at Riverdale, says this expansion in rehab services is in part due to demand by baby boomers for short-term rehabilitation.

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Researchers from Harvard Medical School and Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice examined 251 nursing homes that adopted culture change between 2004 and 2009. Read Full Post

One of your IRF claims was denied and appealed to the QIC/Maximus with medical record citations and written arguments, yet the decision was still Unfavorable.

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Working with an elderly population can require special understanding. Keep these tips in mind when interacting with older patients in therapy: Stand or sit face-to-face when conversing. Kneel when speaking to patients in wheelchairs. Ask the patient to complete one task at a time. 

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On July 31, 2013, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) issued the final 2014 Medicare payment and regulatory update for Inpatient Rehabilitation Facilities, which includes a 2.3 percent increase in Medicare payments effective on October 1, 2013. 

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Kristina Pekovic, SPTA, recently presented her in-service on joint mobilization to her group at Kindred Hospital – Indianapolis.

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Shelly Mesure, owner of national rehabilitation management consultancy “A Mesured Solution, Inc.,” recently identified ten common errors in rehab documentation that can delay payment for therapy services. In her “Rehab Realities” column for McKnight’s Long-Term Care News , Mesure suggested that

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The Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) recently delivered its annual report to Congress on Medicare Payment Policy and provided testimony before the House Ways and Means Health subcommittee.

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