Re: Group therapy vs Concurrent therapy in SNF

[Guest guest]

Unless a specific FI submits a written opinion (known as a LMRP), I would

just read the Medicare guidelines as they are written. Don't try to read

between the lines, as some do, to create new rules. Part A Therapy minutes

are therapy minutes, not discipline minutes.

Medicare Part B would tend to be more discipline specific than the RUG level

concept of Part A.

Steve Passmore

Healthy Recruiting Tools

spass@...

Group therapy vs Concurrent therapy in SNF

>

>

> Please give me insight in the following. Medicare A specifies that no more

> than 25% of the total therapy minutes delivered by the 3 therapies (PT,

> OT,

> ST) be group therapy (maximum 4 people). My first question: does this

> apply

> in the same way to each discipline or are there different rules for PT, OT

> and ST? My second question: I have heard somewhere (can't remember where)

> that some interventions delivered in a SNF can be delivered as concurrent

> therapy to several patients at the same time, in which case the full

> amount

> of minutes is counted for each patient treated during this time. Is this

> so?

> And if so, what interventions are these or what are the conditions under

> which this would be the case? Thanks for the info!

>

> Yorick Wijting, PT

> Chattanooga, TN

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

Unless a specific FI submits a written opinion (known as a LMRP), I would

just read the Medicare guidelines as they are written. Don't try to read

between the lines, as some do, to create new rules. Part A Therapy minutes

are therapy minutes, not discipline minutes.

Medicare Part B would tend to be more discipline specific than the RUG level

concept of Part A.

Steve Passmore

Healthy Recruiting Tools

spass@...

Group therapy vs Concurrent therapy in SNF

>

>

> Please give me insight in the following. Medicare A specifies that no more

> than 25% of the total therapy minutes delivered by the 3 therapies (PT,

> OT,

> ST) be group therapy (maximum 4 people). My first question: does this

> apply

> in the same way to each discipline or are there different rules for PT, OT

> and ST? My second question: I have heard somewhere (can't remember where)

> that some interventions delivered in a SNF can be delivered as concurrent

> therapy to several patients at the same time, in which case the full

> amount

> of minutes is counted for each patient treated during this time. Is this

> so?

> And if so, what interventions are these or what are the conditions under

> which this would be the case? Thanks for the info!

>

> Yorick Wijting, PT

> Chattanooga, TN

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

Hello Yorick,

In a SNF, for Medicare Part A patients, group may consist of only

4 or fewer patients. It must be denoted in the patient's plan of care,

and all patients in the group should be at a similar level. The group

time may not exceed 25% of total time for each discipline seperately.

For Part A patients, you may treat 2 patients concurrently and bill each

for the total time as long as the decision to treat concurrently is made

by the therapist based on patient need. Medicare expressed concern

recently that patients were being treated concurrently to increase

productivity, not based on a therapist's skilled assessment.

For Medicare Part B patients in a SNF, any 2 or more patients

treated at the same time, whether with the same or different routine,

must be charged the group charge for each patient. A large company had a

lot of trouble because they did not abide by this rule.

Steve, you wrote that " Part A Therapy minutes are therapy

minutes, not discipline minutes " . In some cases, for instance Ultra

High, the patient must receive therapy from at least 2 disciplines.

Receiving 725 minutes from one discipline alone would not enter the

patient into the Ultra High catagory.

Happy New Year to all!

Rich, PT

ACRM/Norwalk Hospital

24 s Street

Norwalk, CT 06851

ext, 123

On Thu, 30 Dec 2004 20:39:31 -0600 " Steve Passmore "

writes:

>

>

> Unless a specific FI submits a written opinion (known as a LMRP), I

> would

> just read the Medicare guidelines as they are written. Don't try

> to read

> between the lines, as some do, to create new rules. Part A Therapy

> minutes

> are therapy minutes, not discipline minutes.

>

> Medicare Part B would tend to be more discipline specific than the

> RUG level

> concept of Part A.

>

> Steve Passmore

> Healthy Recruiting Tools

> spass@...

>

>

> Group therapy vs Concurrent therapy in SNF

>

>

> >

> >

> > Please give me insight in the following. Medicare A specifies that

> no more

> > than 25% of the total therapy minutes delivered by the 3 therapies

> (PT,

> > OT,

> > ST) be group therapy (maximum 4 people). My first question: does

> this

> > apply

> > in the same way to each discipline or are there different rules

> for PT, OT

> > and ST? My second question: I have heard somewhere (can't remember

> where)

> > that some interventions delivered in a SNF can be delivered as

> concurrent

> > therapy to several patients at the same time, in which case the

> full

> > amount

> > of minutes is counted for each patient treated during this time.

> Is this

> > so?

> > And if so, what interventions are these or what are the conditions

> under

> > which this would be the case? Thanks for the info!

> >

> > Yorick Wijting, PT

> > Chattanooga, TN

> >

> >

> >