Proposed Settlement May Expand Medicare Coverage for Important Services

In a proposed settlement of a nationwide class-action lawsuit, the Obama administration has agreed to change the decades-old practice of denying Medicare coverage for skilled nursing care or physical therapy unless the patient could be shown to have a likelihood of medical or functional improvement.

According to a story in the New York Times, “Federal officials agreed to rewrite the Medicare manual to make clear that Medicare coverage of nursing and therapy services does not turn on the presence or absence of an individual’s potential for improvement, but is based on the beneficiary’s need for skilled care.”

Read more about changes in Medicare coverage for in-home nursing care and physical therapy:

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