NARA SPRING CONFERENCE 2015
Renaissance Washington, D.C. Dupont Circle
MONDAY, MAY 4, 2015
8 - 9 a.m. Light Breakfast and Conference Sign In
9 - 9:30 a.m. President’s Welcome
Kennedy Hawkins
NARA President
9:30 a.m. - Noon What Will be the Impact of the IMPACT Act on Your Business?
Post-Acute Care (PAC) providers offer important rehabilitation
acute services to Medicare beneficiaries and The Improving
Medicare Post Care Transformation (IMPACT) Act will move
PAC providers to a place where their patient types, outcomes,
and costs of care can be compared across settings as well as
longitudinally. This course will review sections of the IMPACT
Act that are relevant to rehabilitation businesses. It will suggest
approaches providers can use to determine their operational
readiness. Finally, we will openly discuss the challenges and
opportunities this law presents.
Ellen R. Strunk, PT, MS, GCS, CEEAA
Rehab Resources and Consulting, Inc.
Noon - 1:30 p.m. Lunch on Your Own
1:30 - 2:30 p.m. Compliance…Beyond the Documentation Audit
Intermediate level summary of the elements each rehab provider
must have to ensure an effective compliance program exists in
their business. Presentation will include compliance “hot topic”
areas of focus for 2015 in the rehabilitation arena spanning
multiple environments, including fraud and abuse laws. Useful
examples, resources and tips for immediate implementation in
practice settings will be provided.
Nancy J. Beckley, MB, MBA, CHC
Nancy Beckley & Associates
PJ Rhoades, PT, DPT, MS, CHC
Creative Rehab Strategies
MONDAY, MAY 4, 2015 continued
2:30 - 2:45 p.m. Break
2:45 - 3:45 p.m. Getting Serious About Site Neutral Payments
In early January, the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission
(“MedPAC”) approved a recommendation for site-neutral Medicare
payments for post-acute care furnished in some sites of service.
Capitol Hill is also paying great attention to such a methodology.
This session will brief NARA members on site-neutral payments,
MedPAC’s recommendation and where such proposals may lead.
Evan Christman [Invited]
Senior Analyst, MedPAC
Carol Carter [Invited]
Principal Policy Analyst, MedPAC
3:45 - 4:15 p.m. Preparation for Hill Visits
The purpose of this session is to discuss the legislative issues
which NARA members should raise when visiting their Members
of Congress. Materials for use in the Capitol Hill visits will be
distributed at this time.
George G. Olsen, Esq.
President
Williams & Jensen, PLLC
Mark Anderson, PT
President
Mountain Land Rehabilitation, Inc.
4:15 - 6 p.m. Connections & Cocktails – NEW THIS YEAR
Join us for a “speed dating” type event between owners and
providers who need solution partners. This event will start the
process for meaningful networking and connections throughout
the NARA conference. Each owner/provider will have an opportunity
to request matches in categories of interest…and solution partners
will have an opportunity to meet key decision makers. This is a great
opportunity for providers to investigate solutions for key business
needs and for vendors to discuss their unique contributions.
Solution partners will complete profile information identifying
their unique contributions for the identified categories. A matching
process will set up meetings between providers and solution
partners during this allocated time.
6 - 7:30 p.m. Welcome Reception
TUESDAY, MAY 5, 2015
8 a.m. - 1 p.m. Conference Attendee Visits to Capitol Hill
NARA Members should have contacted their congressional
representatives to set up appointments during this time.
Attendees will be provided printed material to leave with the
representative along with talking points for ease of discussing
the key topics of concern to rehab providers. Be sure to come
prepared with lots of business cards so your Members of
Congress and their staff can contact you after your visit.
1 - 2 p.m. Lessons Learned From a ZPIC Audit
This session will be co-presented by a health law attorney and
clinical consultant with experience in defense of SNF/rehab
focused ZPIC audits and appeals of both medical necessity
denials and the use of extrapolation. Content will assist providers
in advanced compliance planning and response in the area of
government audits of Medicare services. Practical guidance on
identifying provider vulnerabilities based on primary focus areas
for ZPIC reviews will be discussed, as well as suggested solutions
to address them. Tips will be shared based on actual experiences
of presenters in responding to ZPIC review, formulating appeal
arguments and implementing compliance program updates in
response to audit outcomes. Format will be lecture with case
study examples and group discussion/question and answer.
Amie Martin, OTR/L, CHC, RAC-CT, VDTCT
Proactive Medical Review & Consulting, LLC
Jim Kelly, Esq.
Proactive Medical Review & Consulting, LLC
TUESDAY, MAY 5, 2015 (continued)
2 - 3:30 p.m. Rehabilitation and Its Role in Care Management
Opportunities to improve care and decrease cost are evident in
new payment initiatives. This session will discuss lessons learned
around our participation in Bundled Payment and Accountable
Care Organizations (ACO’s). We will address the financial and
regulatory implications and opportunities for providers to be
successful while focusing on improved quality. The session
will identify the infrastructure, challenges and opportunities
to provide patient-centered integrated care in a fee for service
environment. We will look at the care redesign through care
management capabilities and the key role that rehabilitation
plays. Finally, we will define the role that function plays in the
ability for a person to be safely transitioned from “home to
home” with the ultimate goal of remaining safely in the home.
Mary Van de Kamp, MS/CCC-SLP
Senior VP of Quality and Integrated Care
Kindred Care Management
3:30 - 3:45 p.m. NARA PAC Presentation
3:45 - 4 p.m. Break
4 - 5:30 p.m. NARA Membership Annual Business Meeting and Election
WEDNESDAY, MAY 6, 2015
8 - 8:30 a.m. Session Sign-In, Breakfast and Membership Networking
8:30 - 10 a.m. Rehabilitation Profession Initiatives Concerning Best Practices,
Clinical Judgment, and Documentation
Rehabilitation professional associations have been working
diligently on a number of initiatives concerning evidence-based
recommendations to help patients and providers make decisions
about appropriate care, the application of clinical judgment
in health care settings, documentation for evidence-based
practices and utilization of evidence-based resources to reduce
the risk of fraud, abuse and waste.
Representatives from APTA, AOTA and ASHA will report on their
individual and collective efforts.
Matt Elrod, PT, DPT, MEd, NCS
Practice Department
American Physical Therapy Association
Monica Sampson, PhD, CCC-SLP
Associate Director, Health Care Services in Speech-Language
Pathology
American Speech-Language-Hearing Association
Deborah Yarett Slater, MS, OT/L, FAOTA
Ethics Program Manager & Governance Liaison
American Occupational Therapy Association
WEDNESDAY, MAY 6, 2015 continued
10 - 10:30 a.m. Break
10:30 a.m. - Noon The View from Capitol Hill: Therapy Caps, “Doc Fix”, ACA
Legislation, Fraud and Abuse
It is clear that health care will command a great deal of attention
from the new 114th Congress including numerous issues which
impact rehabilitation providers. Congress must take action
by March 31st to avert a 21% reduction in the physician fee
schedule and extend the outpatient therapy caps exceptions
process. When Congress addresses these matters it may also
include other provisions which affect rehab providers as it has
done in the past (e.g. manual medical review). Legislators have
a keen interest in passing a sweeping Medicare fraud and abuse
proposal which will heighten the compliance obligations of
Medicare providers. The Republican Congress is also planning
significant changes in the Affordable Care Act which could alter
the health care landscape considerably. In the wake of several
health care data breaches, Congress is contemplating proposals
to better protect patient data under the control of providers
and insurers. These issues will be explored by a panel of key
congressional staffers.
Moderator: George G. Olsen, Esq.
Panelists: Professional health care staffers from Capitol Hill
Noon - 12:30 p.m. Closing Remarks and Adjournment