Therapists, take note! Proposed changes to ICD-10 mapping
By
Renee Kinder
May 12, 2022
The buzz around the proposed rule for fiscal 2023 continues as providers aim to review, digest and comment on proposed updates to the SNF payment rates, wage index adjustments, methodology for recalibrating...
How to make your nursing facility RAC-ready
By
Bryan Baird
Nov 08, 2011
As skilled nursing facilities adjust to the changes to Medicare that arrived early last month, they must be ready for Recovery Audit Contractors. RACs are independent auditors for the government that are...
SNF therapy billing controversy rises from the dead
By
Elizabeth Newman
Oct 02, 2015
Despite my love of Halloween, there is one component of it that is distinctly not for me: Horror movies. Still, I’m enough of a pop culture enthusiast that I can appreciate those with an appetite...
You’re probably guilty of too much documentation
By
Shelly Mesure, MS, OTR/L
Jun 18, 2013
Is it time for a diet? Not a food diet, but a documentation diet. I’ve written previous blogs about documentation quick tips, top 10 reasons for denials, and so on. But, how many of you are guilty...
Whose life is it anyway?
By
Jean Wendland Porter
Sep 21, 2023
My family is full of therapists, and most of us work in skilled nursing. My sister, an experienced speech language pathologist, called to commiserate about one of her patients who had difficulty swallowing. ...
Reason for referral: Documentation tips for therapists
By
Renee Kinder
Mar 14, 2024
If you didn’t document it, it didn’t happen. How many times have we all heard those words? Today, I would like for us all to consider not merely the importance of documenting daily skilled care but...
A good first step but more to do with MDS 3.0
By
Leah Klusch, RN, BSN, FACHCA
Mar 07, 2012
It was a long first day, but there was tremendous value and everyone who is here has learned what the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ positions are with the April updates and some of the...
The Jimmo scorecard and CMS compliance update
By
Steven Littlehale
Nov 25, 2014
In some ways, 2014 has been a monumental year. But it’s not over yet, especially with regard to Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services steps regarding the historic Jimmo settlement agreement signed...
Staring into the abyss when the abyss won’t make eye contact
By
Jean Wendland Porter
Oct 28, 2016
In this world of RACs, ADRs, denials and incentivized payback demands, it behooves us as providers to stare back at The Abyss and defy the illogical and irrational edicts of “PLOF” as the determining...
Customer service at its finest?
By
Jean Wendland Porter
Apr 14, 2017
I’ve had the privilege to speak with two different medical entities today and wanted to share the experience with my readers and colleagues.