March 29, 2024
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) have proposed a modest payment increase of 2.8% for inpatient rehabilitation facilities (IRFs) in fiscal year 2025.
CMS also proposes adding new assessment items to the IRF Patient Assessment Instrument (PAI) to capture additional data on social determinants of health (SDOH), including:
It also proposes to modify an existing SDOH assessment item associated with transportation.
The Improving Post-Acute Care Transformation (IMPACT) Act requires standardized items across post-acute care assessment tools. So these assessment items will likely be proposed in the home health, skilled nursing, and long-term care hospital proposed rules, which are expected in the spring or early summer.
ASHA is reviewing the provisions of the proposed rule and will submit comments to CMS. If finalized, these policies would impact payment for services provided on or after October 1, 2024 (the beginning of the federal fiscal year).
Email reimbursement@asha.org.