As the 21st century has progressed, it has become evident how much has changed throughout the past two decades. There have been a multitude of industries that have been immensely altered in the past 20 years, and the rise of technological industries has been extremely important. While there have been many new industries that have been developed, existing ones, like healthcare have also undergone a transformation in recent years. There have been numerous changes throughout the healthcare industry in recent years, as many new medical technologies have been introduced, as well as an increase in the access to healthcare throughout the world. There are numerous specialties within healthcare, and physical therapy is a growing facet of the field.
Understanding Physical Therapy
As physical therapy has grown in popularity throughout the world, it has become clear that many people desire non-invasive procedures when treating injuries and other disorders. Physical therapists may not have as much training as medical doctors, but becoming licensed in this field still requires a great knowledge of how the human body functions and what to do to fix a multitude of different types of ailments. Being a physical therapist and operating an office in this field will require you to understand how to help people with chronic pain and other problems, but it will also require you to learn about the many procedural systems that are necessary throughout the industry. One of the many protocols that physical therapists need to understand is the Medicare 8 minute rule, as this affects both the treatment and billing of patients on Medicare.
Learning about and Applying the Medicare 8 Minute Rule into Your Physical Therapy Office
There are numerous challenging aspects of running a physical therapy office, and the variety of procedural protocols you need to follow only increases the difficulties you face. While there are numerous regulations you need to adhere to, the Medicare 8 minute rule is one of the most essential for your business. There are rules set up by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) that require therapists to provide service for between 8 and 22 minutes to qualify for a full unit of therapy. The service rendered has to be time spent with therapists providing skilled services, which means that the therapist cannot be doing anything except working with the patient in a one-on-one setting for that time to qualify for a full unit. This rule also stipulates that the therapy provided must be done by a therapist, and that time spent with an aide does not count towards the time for a unit. This time also includes timed procedures like e-stim, but cannot be used for untimed codes such as evaluations. When learning about the Medicare 8 minute rule, it is critical for your company to understand and adhere to the specifications.
Final Thoughts
Operating a physical therapy office is extremely difficult and is and is made even more challenging by having to adhere to the numerous insurance procedures, like the Medicare 8 minute rule. Learning how to apply this rule into your business model is essential for your success in this field and will ensure that you have a more productive office.
