Medicare Audiology Services Enhancement Act of 2013

[Umbo]

Hello Fellow Audiology Students!

I was just curious to know if anyone is aware of the Medicare Audiology Services Enhancement Act (proposed by ASHA) and the possible change to the autonomy of our field in the future? Once it is implemented, patient's will need a physician's "referral" to seek our services and care. I was just wanting to know your thoughts on this matter. Here is the link to more information about the the Act.


http://www.asha.org/Advocacy/Frequently-Asked-Questions-about-the-Medicare-Audiology-Services-Enhancement-Act-of-2013/

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[Temonio]

While I am not certain of the negatives, ASHA seems to believe that it will allow for MORE access. I'm not 100 percent certain, as I have little to no experience with other healthcare systems, but as a military member, we must get a referral for any special services (outside of our PCM). This includes our families. There has not been a case that I'm aware of that a PCM has told a patient that could not see a specialist. I told my doc about my back pain, got an MRI and immediately received a referral to see a neurosurgeon. My doc went so far as to not give me any medications until I spoke with them.

The bigger question seems to be what the Docs in question think about the services provided by an Audiologist. From what i am reading on here, many docs dont seem to respect what Audiologists do for patients. If they don't respect the field as a whole, then I could easily see referrals getting declined.

 

[Orin13]

Why should an audiologist who has had 4+ years of schooling and direct clinical experience related to the ear and hearing mechanisms have to submit a "plan of care" to a physician who has had maybe 1 course semesters worth of basic hearing science? As you stated previously, audiology is a field that isn't regarded very highly among those who are unfamiliar with it and I think this will only belittle it even more. If anything the DOCTOR of audiology should know what he's doing in his own domain and this extra step is a waste of time for the audiologist, the physician AND most importantly the patient. Not to mention the fact that this also means that a part of the paycheck now goes to the physician just for "overlooking" this entire process.
Clearly this plan benefits all the physicians, but i see little to no benefits for the audiologists. Just my two cents.

 

[Umbo]

I agree with Orin13. Even, AAA is against the bill proposed by ASHA. Below is a statement from the President of AAA- Deborah Carlson:

"This statement leads the Academy to believe that if passed, this bill would increase physician oversight of audiologists for the added services that are already within audiology’s scope of practice and do not currently require physician oversight. Additionally, audiology services provided to Medicare beneficiaries would be at greater risk for decreased reimbursement and, since the proposed legislation would not afford audiologists the ability to opt out of Medicare, participating audiologists would be subject to reimbursement rates for services as assigned by CMS. Medicare reimbursement rates for covered audiology services are already currently lower than the actual cost of providing the service. Further reductions could result in audiologists’ inability to continue to treat Medicare patients, thereby restricting care to beneficiaries in need.” In concluding, the AAA president said, “…the Academy is unlikely to support this initiative, as it is contrary to our pursuit toward greater professional autonomy, improved access to audiologists for Medicare beneficiaries, and fair, sustainable levels of reimbursement for services provided by audiologists.”

http://hearinghealthmatters.org/hearingnewswatch/2013/audiology-organizations-clash-over-federal-legislative-strategies/

 

[dagedajies]

that right,Clearly this plan benefits all the physicians, but i see little to no benefits for the audiologists. Just my two cents.

 

[TheEarDoc]

Unfortunately this plan just puts more money into the physicians' pockets by requiring an office visit with their PCP, then they will get a nice check for the visit, then of course being how most physicians are, they will refer the patient to ENT (because many physicians are ignorant of what audiologists are and do). The patient will then be charged for an office visit with the ENT and then maybe (hopefully) referred to the audiologist in the practice working for the ENT for a hearing evaluation.

What most likely will happen is most patients will not jump through all the above hoops (especially if they don't have decent insurance), and will simply see the hearing aid dealer in town offering a free "hearing test" and go see them for their hearing healthcare needs. Then if they are having active or possibly active middle ear disease, central pathologies, or vestibular issues, they may if the are lucky have a hearing aid dealer smart enough and who cares enough about the patient to "recommend" they be evaluated by an ENT or audiologist.

The whole thing is just a step backwards.