APTQI Joins More Than 100 Organizations on Letter to Congressional Leadership Urging Action to Address Medicare Physician Fee Schedule Cuts

Jul 29, 2022 | Business

 The Alliance for Physical Therapy Quality and Innovation (APTQI) joined more than 100 organizations representing more than one million physician and non-physician healthcare professionals in signing a letter to Senate Finance, House Ways and Means, and House Energy and Commerce Committee leadership urging Congress to take action to mitigate the scheduled payment cuts in the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ (CMS) CY2023 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS) Proposed Rule. The proposed rule once again includes deep, across-the-board payment cuts to specialty providers, cutting the Medicare conversion factor by 4.5 percent in 2023.

With the physical therapy field still dealing with the impact of the 15 percent cuts to physical and occupational therapy assistants implemented in 2022, along with the negative economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, physical therapists are increasingly concerned with how to financially continue providing high-quality, accessible care to every patient. Providers are calling on Congress to pass legislation providing at least a 4.5 percent conversion factor adjustment for 2023, waiving the statutory 4 percent PAYGO requirement, and providing a one-year inflationary update based on the Medicare Economic Index.

“We find it extremely troubling that CMS has proposed yet another round of deep cuts to therapy service providers,” said Nikesh Patel, PT, Executive Director of APTQI. “These cuts are dangerous and undermine access to care for the millions of seniors across the country who rely on physical, occupational, and speech therapy to manage their pain, increase their mobility, and regain their independence. Congress must intervene to stop these cuts from going into effect to preserve senior access to this vital care and ensure financial stability for providers.”

In addition to mitigating the immediate CY23 MPFS cuts, the organizations also called on Congress to address systemic issues within the Medicare physician payment system, including the negative impact of budget neutrality requirements and the lack of an annual inflationary update, that continue to create instability for healthcare professionals and beneficiaries’ access to healthcare services.

“Our organizations welcome the opportunity to work together to establish a pathway for identifying policy solutions that will ensure long-term stability for the MPFS, and we remain committed to partnering with Congress to identify and advance necessary reforms. However, this will require both collaboration and a significant time investment. Millions of seniors rely on the Medicare program, and we must work to ensure it remains a robust and dependable option for those who need it the most, both in the short and long term,” the letter said.

Groups on the letter include the American Medical Association, American Physical Therapy Association, American Occupational Therapy Association, and United Specialists for Patient Access.

The read the coalition letter, click here.

About Alliance for Physical Therapy Quality and Innovation (APTQI)

The Alliance for Physical Therapy Quality and Innovation (APTQI) unites small, medium and large physical therapy practices to advocate for the physical therapy profession in the areas of payment reform, quality initiatives, outcomes and innovation projects. We are an aligned group of therapists and practices who share a common vision for the future of our profession. Our goal is to establish physical therapy as the treatment of choice and the best value for patients and payers. Learn more at aptqi.com.

Alliance for Physical Therapy Quality and Innovation

Ellen Almond

(202) 271-0234

www.aptqi.com/

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APTQI Urges Congress to Ensure Continued Patient Access to Specialty Care, Investment in MPFS

Apr 29, 2021 | Business

The Alliance for Physical Therapy Quality and Innovation (APTQI) today joined more than 60 organizations representing over one million physician and non-physician health care providers in calling on Congress to enact provisions that will ensure continued Medicare beneficiary access to vital services and provide additional financial stability to the United States’ healthcare system.

In a letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA), Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer (D-NY) and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY), the groups call attention to the financial turbulence instigated by the COVID-19 pandemic and describe how this instability was exacerbated by the significant reimbursement cuts included in the 2021 final Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS). While Congress passed bipartisan legislation to mitigate the scheduled cuts in 2021, the groups note that the law does not address the ongoing structural problems with the MPFS. As severe cuts again loom over specialty providers in 2022 and beyond, the groups caution that patient access could be seriously disrupted.

“Our medical practices, therapy clinics and practitioners must remain viable, so our nation can fully recover from this pandemic and continue to provide high-quality care focused on engaging patients, increasing the delivery of integrated, team-based care, expanding chronic disease management, and reducing hospital admission/readmission rates for beneficiaries residing in the community as well as those in long-term nursing facilities,” the coalition letter states.

To help stabilize the healthcare system, which has been battered by the pandemic, and to ensure Medicare beneficiaries do not lose access to the specialty services they require, the groups urge Congress to make a critical investment in the nation’s specialty care infrastructure. Specifically, they ask for an additional $3 billion investment in the MPFS for 2022 to mitigate expected reductions to the Medicare conversion factor. This level of funding would equate to a 3.75% increase for all payments across the MPFS, allowing providers to address lengthy patient backlogs and additional delays and costs associated with the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to a new report by the American Medical Association, physical therapy saw a massive 34 percent reduction in spending between January and June 2020—one of the deepest cuts of any health specialty. Investing in the MPFS will go a long way towards helping ensure physical therapy providers can continue to serve patients in the face of these severe financial pressures.

“APTQI strongly supports the recommendations made in the letter,” said Nick Patel, PT, Executive Director of APTQI. “We look forward to working with Congress to ensure arbitrary Medicare cuts do not negatively impact the millions of seniors who rely on Medicare to meet their health needs.”

To read the text of the coalition letter, click here.

About Alliance for Physical Therapy Quality and Innovation (APTQI)
The Alliance for Physical Therapy Quality and Innovation (APTQI) unites small, medium and large physical therapy practices to advocate for the physical therapy profession in the areas of payment reform, quality initiatives, outcomes and innovation projects. We are an aligned group of therapists and practices who share a common vision for the future of our profession. Our goal is to establish physical therapy as the treatment of choice and the best value for patients and payers. Learn more at aptqi.com.