Eli's Rehab Report

Workers’ Health Coverage Deferred Till 2015

If you are a physical therapist who owns a private practice with more than 50 employees, the government has just given you a reprieve for a year. Assistant Secretary for Tax Policy Mark Mazur noted in a post on the US Treasury website that many of the practices/businesses which would have been affected by the Affordable Care Act (ACA) requirement to provide health coverage to employees already do so.

Instead of 2014 being your deadline, full implementation will be in 2015. You can now use this extra time to start adapting your reporting systems of your workers’ health coverage to the simplified requirements.

Hawaii Gives Physical Therapist Assistants Cause To Cheer

It’s official — all 50 states now require regulation of PTAs. Bill (SB 1074), which requires the licensure of physical therapist assistants (PTA) in Hawaii, was signed into law by Governor Neil Abercrombie on June 27, 2013

“Quality of patient care has always been a core concern that drives APTA and its components,” said American Physical Therapy Association (APTA) President Paul A. Rockar Jr, PT, DPT, MS. “We have taken steps through the years to promote and improve standards of practice in the profession, and it is important that state and federal laws work to do the same. Licensure of PTAs in all 50 states and the District of Columbia has been a longtime goal for APTA, and that has now been achieved,” in a June 27, APTA press release.

A number of changes were enacted in the new law, including establishing title protection both for the regulatory designation “PTA” and for the doctor of physical therapy (DPT) educational degree. Changes to the composition of the state physical therapy licensing board by eliminating the seat reserved for a physician and replacing it with a seat for a physical therapist assistant have been made by this piece of legislation.

This enactment follows Governor Abercrombie’s approval of another bill (SB 1075) on April 22. Continuing education has been made a requirement for physical therapists seeking to renew their licenses to practice in Hawaii.

“Beginning with the December 31, 2016 licensure renewal cycle, physical therapists must obtain at least 30 approved continuing competence units in each 2-year license renewal period,” the release added.

You can read the full text of the press release at www.apta.org/Media/Releases/Legislative/2013/6/27/.