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2017 Medicare Part B Fee Schedule (Retroactive April 2017 Quarterly Update to the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule Database)
The revised 2017 therapy fees for each CPT/HCPCS Code in each Georgia geographic area are provided in the files below (changes have been highlighted in yellow):
- 2017 Medicare Part B Fee Schedule (Retroactive April 2017 Quarterly Update to the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule Database)
- The 2017 Medicare Part B MPPR Fee Schedule for “Always Therapy Services (50% MPPR Factor) for each Georgia Carrier and Locality (MPPR Fees)
- The 2017 Relative Value Units for each Outpatient Rehabilitation Therapy Code (RVUs)
- The 2017 Geographic Practice Cost Indices by Medicare Carrier and Locality (GPCI)
The Part B Fee Schedule amounts are calculated as follows:
((A1 x B1) + (A2 x B2) + (A3 x B3)) x Conversion Factor (Part B Fees), and
((A1 x B1) + ((A2 x B2) x (1-MPPR Factor) + (A3 x B3)) x Conversion Factor (MPPR Part B Fees), where:
A1 = Physician Work RVU
A2 = Non-Facility Practice Expense RVU
A3 = Malpractice RVU
B1 = Work GPCI
B2 = Practice Expense GPCI
B3 = Malpractice GPCI
Conversion Factor = $35.8887
MPPR Factor = 50%
Please note that the fees effective January 1, 2017 are calculated based upon the Calendar Year (CY) 2017 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS) Final Rule (CMS-1654-F) published in the Federal Register on November 15, 2016. This final rule reflects the requirements of the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015 (MACRA) which repealed the Sustainable Growth Rate formula. Further, the MACRA allowed for a one-half percent (0.5%) update from July 1, 2015, to December 31, 2015, a one-half percent (0.5%) update for CY 2016, and allows a one-half percent (0.5%) update for CY 2017. The MACRA also extends the physician work geographic practice cost index (GPCI) floor of 1.0, and the therapy cap exceptions process, through December 2017. (The CY 2017 therapy cap amount is $1,980 for outpatient occupational therapy and $1,980 for physical therapy and speech-language pathology services combined.) Additionally, as required by the ACA, the 1.5 work GPCI floor for Alaska and the 1.0 practice expense GPCI floor for frontier states are permanent, and therefore, applicable in CY 2017.
The final rule continues the multiple procedure payment reduction (MPPR) policy for “always therapy” services. The MPPR policy required, effective April 1, 2013, a 50 percent reduction to be applied to the practice expense component of payment for the second and subsequent “always therapy” service(s) that are furnished to a single patient by a single provider on one date of service (including services furnished in different sessions or in different therapy disciplines). The MPPR worksheet lists those “always therapy” services subject to the MPPR policy and the reduced fee payment amounts.
Further, the final rule updates the Medicare Part B therapy code list for CY 2017 by adding eight “always therapy” codes (97161 – 97168) for physical therapy (PT) and occupational therapy (OT) evaluative procedures and deleting the four codes currently used to report these services (97001 – 97004) at the end of December 2016. Please see Transmittal 3654/Change Request 9782 and Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) MLN Matters article MM9782 for complete information on the 2017 Annual Update to the Therapy Code List.
Finally, supporting documentation and downloads for Regulation #CMS-1654-F may be found here. An overview of the Physician Fee Schedule Payment Policies may be found here and an overview of skilled nursing facility consolidated billing and annual updates may be found here.
This revised version reflects changes published in the Federal Register on March 22, 2017, which corrected a technical error in the allocation of indirect practice expense for CPT codes 97161 through 97168. These corrections are effective retroactive to January 1, 2017 as if they had been included with the final rule published November 15, 2016. Please note that Medicare Administrative Contractors (MACs) were told that they need not search their files to either retract payment for claims already paid or to retroactively pay claims already processed: however, the MACs will adjust such claims that providers bring to their attention. Make sure that billing staffs are aware of these changes. Please see Transmittal R3719CP and Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) MLN Matters article MM9977 for complete information on the April CY 2017 Quarterly Update to the MPFS.
The Atlanta locality includes Butts, Cherokee, Clayton, Cobb, DeKalb, Douglas, Fayette, Forsyth, Fulton, Gwinnett, Henry, Newton, Paulding, Rockdale, and Walton counties. All other counties are included in the Rest of Georgia locality.
Contact GHCA at info@ghca.info or at (678) 289-6555 with questions.