Following last week's discussion on the congressionally mandated report on outpatient therapy services at the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) meeting, APTA submitted comments to the commission urging it to include APTA in the report's development to "ensure that a comprehensive and accurate assessment… is conducted that results in recommendations that ensure access to high quality therapy services for Medicare beneficiaries."

APTA's comments also provide MedPAC with a broad description of the use of outpatient physical therapy services, noting that changes in policies often result in payment shifts from Medicare Part A to Medicare Part B and in patient shifts from one setting to another. In addition, the association comments on major systems reform, tighter coding, and improving the management of the outpatient physical therapy benefit.