As of July 1, 2013, Change Request 8005 requires outpatient therapy service providers to report new functional G-codes and modifiers on claims for physical therapy (PT), occupational therapy (OT), and speech-language pathology (SLP) services or face Medicare payment denials. The G-codes will be used to identify the primary issue being addressed by the therapy, and the modifiers will identify the severity or complexity of the patient, as well as their change over time. The policy includes a list of 42 new non-payable G-codes, 14 sets of three codes each, and seven new severity/complexity modifiers on therapy claims.
This change became effective for therapy services with dates of service on and after January 1, 2013. However, the first six months are a testing period for providers to acclimate to the new coding requirements. During this pre-July 1 testing period, claims without G-codes and modifiers will be processed. Claims for therapy services with dates of service on or after July 1, 2013 that do not have the appropriate G-codes and modifiers will be returned or rejected. In addition, providers may not bill the patient for the rejected services.
After July 1, 2013, the correct G-codes and modifiers must be included on claim forms at the outset of the therapy episode, every 10 treatment days or every 30 calendar days (whichever is less), and at discharge. According to CMS transmittal 1196, contractors are required to alert providers, with the exception of institutional providers, to include the new G-codes with modifiers on future therapy claims through a Remittance Advice Message as of April 1, 2013.