Home Health & Hospice Week

Heed therapy cap law's new provisions. Therapy cap exceptions now apply through Dec. 31, thanks to the Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2011 (H.R. 3630) signed into law in February, but Part B therapy providers should stay on their toes -- the law presents a few new twists. 1) Manual medical review. Therapy caps kick in at $1,880, but effective Oct. 1, 2012, any therapy claims above $3,700 will be subject to a manual medical review process. (Reminder: For home care providers, the therapy caps apply only to outpatient therapy furnished under Part B, not to therapy included in a home care plan of care.) The American Occupational Therapy Association, American Physical Therapy Asso-ciation, and American Speech-Language Hearing Association are arranging meetings with the Cen-ters for Medicare & Medicaid Services to discuss what the review process will entail. "One of the reasons why $3,700 was picked [...]