The Protecting Access to Medicare Act of 2014 extended the process for exceptions to Medicare’s outpatient therapy caps through March 2015. Exceptions to Medicare’s outpatient therapy caps are allowed for medically necessary and reasonably therapy services. However, claims above $3,700 for physical therapy and speech language pathology services combined, and above $3,700 for occupational therapy services, are subject to manual medical review by recovery audit contractors (RACs). The caps are calculated per beneficiary, per year. While manual medical reviews of outpatient therapy claims above the cap were put on hold last year, existing RACs received approval on January 16, 2015 to resume sending additional documentation requests (ADRs) to Part B providers.
However, CMS recently introduced a new post-payment review system that requires RACs to review outpatient therapy claims using a new manual medical review process. RACs will now be required to review claims using a tiered approach to ADRs. The process allows for 100% review of provider claims above the $3,700 therapy caps (“eligible claims”), but prevents the RACs from requesting large and potentially unmanageable amounts of records at one time.
Beginning in January 2015, the new manual medical review process permits RACs to review 100% of a provider’s eligible claims using a 5-step approach to ADRs. A RAC’s first ADR may only review one claim, but additional ADRs may request records for an increasing percentage of claims. The second ADR may review up to 10% of eligible claims, the third ADR may review up to 25% of eligible claims, and the fourth ADR may review up to 50% of eligible claims. Finally, a RAC’s fifth ADR to a particular provider may review 100% of the provider’s total eligible claims. Please note that the new tiered approach retains the RAC’s cycle of 45 days between ADRs.
The new manual review process meets the congressional mandate of a 100% review rate for outpatient therapy claims above the outpatient therapy cap. However, CMS believes the new manual review process will meet the congressional mandate in a more equitable manner. For now, the review process is limited to claims reviewed by existing RACs for claims made from March 1, 2014 to December 31, 2014. CMS has not yet finalized the process for claims made in 2015. The manual medical review process is also limited to claims made by Part B outpatient therapy providers, including but not limited to therapists’ private offices, offices of physicians, Part B skilled nursing facilities (SNFs), home health agencies (HHAs), and hospital outpatient departments.
Wachler & Associates represents all types of therapy providers in a variety of matters, including responding to ADRs and appealing Medicare overpayment demands. If you or your healthcare entity has any questions regarding Medicare’s new manual medical review process for therapy claims above the outpatient therapy cap, or seek help in defending an overpayment demand by a RAC, please contact an experienced healthcare attorney at 248-544-0888 or via email at wapc@wachler.com. To stay up to date on healthcare regulatory developments, subscribe to our blog by adding your email address in the window on the top right of this page.