Have you heard the news? The proposed rules for 2019 are out and CMS is making some significant recommendations!
They are recommending to eliminate Functional Limitation Reporting and to add new modifiers to distinguish services provided by Physical Therapy Assistants and Occupational Therapy Assistants. According to the 2018 Fact Sheet item from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, “we are proposing to discontinue the functional status reporting requirements for services furnished on or after January 1, 2019.”
Another potentially significant proposed change is that Physical Therapists and Occupational Therapists may be considered Eligible Clinicians during the 2019 performance year for the Quality Payment Program (QPP). Here’s a quote direct from the Proposed Rule for the Quality Payment Program Year 3 Fact Sheet, “Some prominent proposals include expanding the definition of MIPS eligible clinicians to include new clinician types (physical therapists, occupational therapists, clinical social workers, and clinical psychologists), adding a third element to the low-volume threshold determination.”