As the federal government continues the process of implementing the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) and Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010, the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA), Alexandria, Va, offers a glimpse tinto the regulations of importance to physical therapy.
New Health Care Tax Credit for Small Businesses: The Internal Revenue Service has issued new guidance to aid small businesses in determining whether they are eligible for a new tax credit under the PPACA.
The small business health care tax credit, effective this year, is intended to incentivize small employers to offer health insurance coverage to its employees. The law provides a tax credit for small employers that pay at least half the cost of single health coverage for their employees beginning in 2010. The guidance provides detailed instructions and examplest o help providers determine whether they qualify for the tax credit and the estimated amount of the tax credit.
Additional Payments to Acute Care and Long-Term Care Hospitals: The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has issued a proposed rule that implements changes in payment for inpatient stays in general acute care hospitals and long-term care hospitals beginning October 1, as mandated by the new health care reform laws. The proposed rule provides for a number of payment adjustments to hospitals paid under the Medicare Inpatient and Long-term Care Hospital Prospective Payment Systems. Specifically, the proposed rule provides additional payments totaling $400 million to qualifying hospitals in underserved counties and extends the Medicare Rural Community Hospital Demonstration Program.
For more information on these and other regulations in the area of health care reform, visit APTA’s Web site.
[Source: APTA]
