Expect steady pay for ortho practices with some decreases from Medicare next year

Why This Topic Matters

The rule sets payment expectations for commonly reported services and introduces several coding and reimbursement changes that can affect practice revenue, reporting workflows, and compliance planning. Understanding the scope of these updates helps practices prepare for implementation dates and related Medicare policy transitions.

Article Sections

1. Final 2015 Medicare physician fee schedule overview

   Summarizes the overall Medicare update, including the general payment environment and how the rule affects orthopedic practices. Also introduces the timing of the rule and the broad types of changes discussed in the article.

2. Procedure and service payment updates

   Covers payment-related changes for selected orthopedic and outpatient procedures, including arthrocentesis, vertebroplasty/kyphoplasty, epidural services, and other affected procedures. Also notes changes tied to imaging and bundled service components.

3. Global periods and bundled surgical services

   Describes Medicare’s planned transition away from longer global periods and the related revaluation process. Addresses the broader policy direction for surgical bundling and postoperative services.

4. Therapy caps and related review policies

   Summarizes annual outpatient therapy cap updates and the status of the medical review threshold. Includes the settings and therapy disciplines affected by these policies.

5. New and revised coding and reporting changes

   Covers updates affecting wound therapy coding, EHR hardship timing, future fee schedule valuation processes, imaging practice expense inputs, provider-based reporting, and obesity counseling reporting. Also notes related place-of-service changes and implementation timing.