Editor's Note: The following is excerpted and revised from Sam Collins' latest article in Dynamic Chiropractic's sister publication, Acupuncture Today, to disseminate timely information to the chiropractic profession regarding the looming fee cuts, which would impact DCs as well.
Medicare is scheduled to make a significant reduction in Medicare rates in 2021. CMS has proposed finalized changes to increase the reimbursement for the outpatient / office physician evaluation and management (E/M) CPT codes in CY 2021 (as proposed by the AMA), which will result in an approximately 8 percent cut in payment for outpatient chiropractic, acupuncture, PT and OT services, effective 1/1/2021 (despite receiving over 10,000 comments against the proposal).
Thirty-six (36) different specialties face cuts in 2021 (including chiropractic, acupuncture, PT/OT, ophthalmology, audiology, and clinical social work) with the increase in payment for the physician E/M codes. However, CMS has not determined the actual cuts to each code as of press time.
All Medicare provider groups have formed a coalition to block these scheduled cuts and there are things that you can do. Several House representatives have introduced the Holding Providers Harmless from Medicare Cuts During COVID-19 Act. This comprehensive bill has wide support in Congress and among Medicare providers. H.R. 8702, through what is known as a "hold harmless" approach, would ensure that payments to Medicare providers, including chiropractic providers, remain at current levels through 2022.
Take a moment today to send a letter to your local congressperson and urge them to co-sponsor this critical legislation. (To find your congressional representatives in the House and Senate, visit here.) This rule is not finalized and with the support of doctors of chiropractic and others, hopefully, it will be blocked. Let's do our part.
Being proactive vs. reactive with tax planning will have a tremendous impact on profitability and long-term wealth creation. Keep in mind, I am not a CPA and I am not giving tax advice. Rather, I’m passing on information that I learned as a practice owner and now implement in my financial planning practice. While not an exhaustive list, here are a few items to contemplate in 2025 as you watch the dollars in your practice.
Part 2 of this three-part article on recogizing and diagnosing delayed-onset motor-vehicle acident (MVA) injuries in clinical practice discusses traumatic Schmorl's nodes, post-concussion syndrome and posttraummatic syrinx. Part 1 covered traumatic subdural hematoma, stroke due to MVA and traumatic central disc herniation.
Research now shows that limited hip internal rotation can significantly contribute to low back pain. This may be caused by hip joint variants, but more commonly by trauma causing adhesion of the hip joint capsule or even prolonged sitting, which overactivates the hip flexors and abductors, and underactivates the hip extensors and adductors.
