There is No 15-Minute Evaluation, and No 100% Productivity
As I continue in PRN work, I am amazed at the “longevity of the absurd” as exemplified in an SLP’s documentation notating a 15-minute evaluation for a Medicare Part A patient, regardless of their admittance diagnosis. This oxymoronic documentation is the end product of some very flawed thinking stretching all the way from Washington, D.C. through the corporate offices of rehab companies, and down to the street level rehabilitation service centers throughout the nation. At the root of this medical corruption is the germinal fact that Medicare Part A evaluations are not reimbursed financially by Medicare. So, when the patient is admitted to a rehabilitation center from hospital, OBRA guidelines which compel a “comprehensive evaluation” (Federal Tag 272) of the patient, places the SLP in the “no pay zone” of Medicare. Work without pay used to be called slavery.