OTontheHill - Reduced Cuts to Medicare Part B

Thanks to aota's advocacy efforts... Congress passes legislation to reduce scheduled Cuts to Medicare part b “

Hannah Hubbard OTD-S Resident Intern, Meaggan Thomas OTD-S Resident Intern, and Barbara Kornblau JD, OTR/L, FAOTA

After a long year of debates and delays, occupational therapists and other healthcare providers nearly faced a 9% cut to Medicare Part B payment rates, as a result of large increases to primary care evaluation and management (E&M). However, due to the advocacy of the occupational therapy profession and other healthcare allies, Congress passed an end-of-the-year $900 billion COVID-19 relief bill, which included a reduction of the 9% cut to a 3%. This bill included an additional $3 million for the Medicare physician fee schedule to aid all practitioners during the public health emergency (PHE) and prevented the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) from implementing a new add-on code, HCPCS code G2211, which amounted to roughly 6% of the original cuts.

If it weren’t for the grassroots efforts of occupational therapists and other healthcare professionals, Congress may have never included key pieces of legislation to stop these cuts. However, Congress was not able to reach a full agreement on how to prevent the full cuts from taking place, so there is still much work to be done to ensure OTs are paid in a way that reflects the value of their services.

Reference

Congress Passes Legislation to Mitigate Scheduled Cuts to Medicare Part B Therapy Services following Extensive AOTA Advocacy Efforts. AOTA. (2020, December 21). https://www.aota.org/Advocacy-Policy/Congressional-Affairs/Legislative-Issues-Update/2020/Congress-Passes-Legislation-Mitigate-Scheduled-Cuts-Medicare-Part-B.aspx.

To cite this page in APA format, please use the following citation:
Hubbard, H. Thomas, M. & Kornblau, B. (2021, January). Reduced Cuts to Medicare B Therapy Services. Retrieved from https://www.otonthehill.com/one-minute-reads

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Thanks to aota's advocacy efforts... Congress passes legislation to reduce scheduled Cuts to Medicare part b “

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