Effective January 1, 2017, Current Procedure Terminology (CPT; ©American Medical Association) code 97001 (physical therapy evaluation) was deleted from the AMA CPT code book and replaced with 3 new tiered codes designed to enable physical therapists (PTs) to better describe the complexity of patients' and clients' clinical presentation and other important contextual factors affecting their outcomes. Code 97002 (physical therapy reevaluation) also was deleted and replaced with a new reevaluation code.

Despite the recommendation of AMA's Relative Value Scale Update Committee (AMA RUC), the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), in the 2017 physician fee schedule, priced the new evaluation codes as a group—using the same value for all 3 codes—rather than stratifying them. CMS says it will collect and analyze utilization data on the new evaluation codes during 2017 to help determine possible future changes in payment policy. This means that even though the code values weren't stratified for 2017, it's critical for PTs to be thoughtful in choosing the most accurate code for each examination, as CMS potentially will use the data when and if it does decide to establish tiered payment.

Here are some key facts to help you start using the codes correctly.