Rehab Realities by Renee Kinder
All data lovers you are in luck! Another quarter of data is in, courtesy of the CMS Research Data Assistance Center (ResDAC). We have all watched trends since the initiation of the Patient Driven Payment Model (PDPM); been curious as to the impact of COVID-19; and will continue to ponder what may occur in FY…
Dysphagia is a swallowing disorder involving the oral cavity, pharynx, esophagus or gastroesophageal junction. Consequences of dysphagia include malnutrition and dehydration, aspiration pneumonia, compromised general health, chronic lung disease, choking and even death. Conservative estimates suggest that dysphagia rates may be: As low as 3% in U.S. inpatients aged 45 years or older to as…
The long-awaited final rule for FY 2022 provided updates in payment rates, wage index, value-based purchasing, quality reporting and a pause to the anticipated parity adjustment. Of equal interest, we see some positive updates to ICD-10 mappings, which are aimed at more effectively reflecting clinical accuracy for the patients we serve daily. Therapists take note:…
Life over the past few weeks has felt a little too normal. Would you all agree? Like we have all just been waiting for the ball to drop, and it has, with the recommendations from the CDC on Tuesday related to increased protections needed with new evidence on the B.1.617.2 (Delta) variant currently circulating in…
Conversion factor, telehealth, supervision requirements and health equity were all outlined in this week’s publication of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ CY 2022 Physician Fee Schedule Proposed Rule. These areas have been reviewed and summarized with ease over the past couple of days in publications across the industry. All the areas, that is,…
Two weeks ago, I came to you with a blog focused on quality. Specifically, “Proposed rule and quality: What your rehab team should know.” Following this piece, I received the comment below from a reader I know simply as Billy. Most therapists want to provide good quality of care. However, some providers have reduced therapy…
The future of quality-driven care is coming. Is your therapy team ready? Reviews of the FY 2022 SNF PPS Proposed Rule often highlight key areas related to data trending, lack of budget neutrality and forthcoming options for parity adjustments. While we all need to understand these key elements and prepare for associated change, it is…
Have you been curious as to the national data trends related to the Patient Driven Payment Model? In a time when we are all considering changes to the future of reimbursement and the impact of potential parity adjustments, knowing your data and national trends is essential. What is parity adjustment, you ask? Recall that PDPM…
Mother’s Day in our household always arrives with excessive amounts of artwork, clay creations and the legendary “Top 10 Reasons Why I Love My Mom” letters. The sentences are always nicely structured leading up to a key word entry from the tiny author. Mothers generally glow, cry or laugh at the adorable resulting responses. Then…
It’s that time of year again when the Current Procedural Terminology (CPT) Editorial Panel meets with the task of ensuring its codes remain up to date.
Spring is in the air. Time to open the doors, let some fresh air in, and clean above, under and between every surface in our homes. Spring is a season that allows my obsessive cleaning habits to become a bit more normalized. Maintenance is my general excuse when others, or the kids, ask why we have…
It is a simple ask. It is the right ask. Show me your therapy minutes. The COVID-19 pandemic appears to have provided a bit of a pause to the anticipated review and audits we all anticipated seeing associated with PDPM. The pandemic, of course, came at a time when the industry also saw the largest…
Confession: I was a terrible student until Joy Tilley rocked my 14-year-old mind with her lessons and passion for the perfect, five-paragraph essay. Awful student I was. Never completed homework. Never did a project (nor did my parents “for me” by the way) Could not sit still or focus. My mind was, and still is,…
If you are an avid reader, or even if you are not, you have likely heard of “Hillbilly Elegy.” The book was written by J.D. Vance and has subsequently been turned into a movie on Netflix ripe with creative attempts to mimic the sing-song nature of a Eastern Kentucky accent. That inflection that is deeply…
Spring is in the air. I feel it. I see it. It must be coming. My 11-year-old, Joseph, said it best over the weekend … “Mommy there is something different about the smell of the air outside, it brings back memories for me, like winter will soon be over.” We were outside this weekend for…
Ever receive the exact right message at the right time? It happened to me last night at 9:21 p.m. EST. A simple email of thanks and kindness landed in my inbox. A thanks, really at that time undeserved, and while I was in a panic over an errored ICD-10 coding report I had created for…
As we shift gears into 2021, we can all agree, no one wants to look back. You see the theme everywhere. People want to evolve and learn from 2020. However, no one wants to go in reverse. Driving in the rearview is never a good idea. Thank goodness for automatic brakes, that forced reminder to…
Paul Harvey on the radio in the mornings was not something I appreciated as a child. We lived on a farm outside of town. My mom, a reporter, always had to be at work early, and the long, crack-of-dawn car rides to school often included tales from “The Rest of the Story.” Living on the…
The biggest challenge to the therapy industry can still be answered this week, but help is needed.
If the past 12 months have been anything for those serving in long-term care, it has been traumatic. With that said, we have risen to the occasion.
