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Concurrent Therapy Use and Students For Part A Medicare

Kathleen D. Weissberg, OTD, OTR/L, CMDCP, CDP, CFPS

December 21, 2016

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Question

Can you review therapy use with students and use of concurrent treatment with regard to billing? 

Answer

Concurrent therapy is the treatment of two patients at the same time who are not performing the same or similar activities. So if a therapy student is involved in treatment, and one of the following were to occur, the minutes have to be coded as concurrent therapy.

  1. This is Part A, so either the therapy student is treating one resident, and the supervisor is treating someone else (so each is treating a patient)
  2. The therapy student is treating two patients, and both are in line of sight of the supervisor, and the supervisor's treating no one 
  3. The student is treating no one, and the supervisor is treating two patients.

So the point of the matter here is it's two patients. The common scenario that occurs is that the student is treating one person, and the supervisor is treating someone else and they say these are individual minutes.  That is not the case as Medicare pays for what that supervisor is bringing to the table. So the supervisor and student are actually considered one person. 


kathleen d weissberg

Kathleen D. Weissberg, OTD, OTR/L, CMDCP, CDP, CFPS

In her 30+ years of practice, Dr. Kathleen Weissberg has worked in rehabilitation and long-term care as an executive, researcher, and educator.  She has established numerous programs in nursing facilities; authored peer-reviewed publications on topics such as low vision, dementia quality care, and wellness; and has spoken at national and international conferences. She provides continuing education support to over 40,000 individuals nationwide as National Director of Education for Select Rehabilitation. She is a Certified Dementia Care Practitioner, a Certified Montessori Dementia Care Practitioner, and a Certified Fall Prevention Specialist.  She serves as the Region 1 Director for the American Occupational Therapy Association Political Action Committee and adjunct professor at Gannon University in Erie, PA. 


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