An Alternative Payment System Promotes Physical-Therapist Directed Care, Higher Quality
There's big news coming out of the APTA; the current fee-for-service/procedural based method of charging outpatients is transitioning to a per session payment system. The APTA believes the change will be made easy when physical therapists follow this Alternative Payment System and use its 12 codes, comprised of both evaluation and treatment codes.
According to the APTA, their goal with APS is to:
- to improve quality of care
- recognize and promote the clinical judgment of the physical therapist
- provide policymakers and payers with an accurate payment system
The Alternative Payment System categorizes patients based on the severity of their condition and intensity of the interventions planned by the therapist. APS makes it easier for healthcare employers to pay PTs based on clinical outcomes and performance.
What do you think? American Traveler Allied is looking for therapists' input on how they think this new system impacts them, their patients, and their physical therapy jobs. The agency encourages you to click on the APS Overview link and educate yourself, as well as read your peers' comments on WebPT's article: The Road to a New Payment System for Physical Therapy; this post gives a breakdown of the pros and cons to APS, a table with Code examples, and the merits of Triple Aim healthcare reform
