On Nov. 2, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services issued a final rule that includes updates on policy changes for Medicare payments under the Physician Fee Schedule (PFS), and other Medicare Part…
Remote Therapeutic Monitoring (RTM): What your rehab team should know about the final rule
By
Renee Kinder
Nov 04, 2021
One positive outcome published in the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ Final Rule on the 2022 Medicare Physician Payment Schedule was clarification around the use of RTM codes. In an era of…
Oh me, oh my… thank goodness for CMMI!
By
Renee Kinder
Oct 21, 2021
There are two deep cleaning seasons in our household. Spring and fall. Fall cleaning includes the neighborhood kids closet rotation (I haven’t had to buy school khakis in three years!), washing…
Skilled services 101: Understanding the medical appropriateness exception
By
Renee Kinder
Oct 07, 2021
In our industry, we have all read it numerous times. Some of us can quote portions of it in our sleep… three consecutive calendar days, for a condition that was treated during the qualifying hospital…
Not so depressing after all
By
Renee Kinder
Sep 23, 2021
I had a milestone birthday recently. A birthday which I refused to celebrate, threatened my husband and friends not to dare surprise me with any activities and had planned to spend alone on the couch with…
The data is in! More trends from CMS ResDAC
By
Renee Kinder
Sep 09, 2021
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…
Dysphagia is a swallowing disorder involving the oral cavity, pharynx, esophagus or gastroesophageal junction. Consequences of dysphagia include malnutrition and dehydration, aspiration pneumonia, compromised…
Therapists, take note! FY 2022 changes in PDPM ICD-10
By
Renee Kinder
Aug 12, 2021
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…
Alpha, Beta, Gamma, and Delta: Why understanding variants matters
By
Renee Kinder
Jul 29, 2021
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…
Don’t minimize de minimis: Understanding the newly proposed Physician Fee Rule
By
Renee Kinder
Jul 15, 2021
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…
Top questions providers should ask their rehab team
By
Renee Kinder
Jul 01, 2021
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…
Proposed rule and quality: What your rehab team should know
By
Renee Kinder
Jun 17, 2021
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…
The data is in! Evaluating a year of PDPM ResDAC data
By
Renee Kinder
Jun 03, 2021
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…
Artificial Intelligence and neural networks, beyond your average key word reader
By
Renee Kinder
May 20, 2021
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…
The ABCs of documenting CPT
By
Renee Kinder
May 06, 2021
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 cleaning 2021: Will your rehab team pass the white-glove review?
By
Renee Kinder
Apr 22, 2021
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…
Providers, are you asking, ‘Show me your therapy minutes’?
By
Renee Kinder
Apr 08, 2021
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…
Finding Joy in everyday teaching
By
Renee Kinder
Mar 25, 2021
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…
2021 and writing your COVID-19 elegy
By
Renee Kinder
Mar 11, 2021
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…
Spring cleaning in the air
By
Renee Kinder
Feb 25, 2021
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,…
