Physical Therapists Score Policy Win in Ohio

Earlier this year, a proposal by the Ohio Board of Workers’ Compensation (BWC) created concern throughout the physical therapy community because it proposed interrupting the flow of care for patients by imposing unnecessary new burdens for documenting services. 

The proposed provision in BWC’s physical therapy billing policy would have created excessive documentation requirements, distracting physical therapists from treating patients and increasing the amount of time spent on redundant administrative tasks. 

Specifically, the proposed changes would have required physical therapists to document the start and stop times of each individual procedure performed in a session each time they saw a patient. This would have required the therapist to stop after each and every procedure and enter information into a patient’s records. Physical therapists throughout the state expressed concern that the proposal would disrupt patient care because the burdensome documentation requirements would have significantly decreased the amount of time physical therapists are available to provide treatment. 

As a leading voice in the physical therapy community, APTQI worked with policymakers at the BWC to discuss the impact the policy would have had on patient care. APTQI Executive Director, Nikesh Patel, PT, DPT, also published a letter to the editor in The Toledo Bladeto highlight the physical therapist perspective. 

After considering feedback from stakeholders throughout the Ohio’s physical therapy community, the BWC reversed its proposed changes and finalized a reasonable policy that will require physical therapists to document: 

• The start and stop times for the session
• The total accumulated for all timed services
• The total time for each individual timed procedure 

APTQI applauds the BWC for taking the physical therapy community’s concerns into account and for being a constructive partner. With the support of APTQI, physical therapists in Ohio will be able to continue focusing more on patients and less on paperwork.