Because of a little-known provision in the law and Washington’s stalemate over healthcare, more than half a million physical therapy patients across the country may soon see an end to Medicare payments for their treatments. That means they will have to pay for the sessions themselves, hope other insurance picks up the tab, go to a hospital for help, or simply stop getting treatment. Medicare patients are in this fix because in 1997 Congress set a hard cap on Medicare payments for physical therapy at clinics, nursing homes, and doctors’ offices—anywhere outside a hospital, the Los Angeles Times reports.
