The Coronavirus pandemic has become a great test for the healthcare systems we have in place. Facing it head on, the time is here for Telehealth in Physical Therapy. In this episode, Nathan Shields speaks with Daniel Seidler, PT of TelePT Solutions about the benefits of the remote provision of healthcare through technology, especially in this time of the outbreak. A relative expert when it comes to providing TelePT services, Daniel has the answers about what you can do to adapt your PT services online. This is a great episode worth listening for any PT owner, to take advantage of the services you can provide, helping those in need in this most pressing time.
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Telehealth PT And The Coronavirus Pandemic With Daniel Seidler, PT Of TelePT Solutions
This interview is scheduled with Daniel Seidler of TelePT Solutions to talk about Telehealth PT services and how we can use it during this Coronavirus outbreak. There’s plenty of information to help you get started at least in providing telehealth PT services. Daniel provides those services through his company, TelePT Solutions. I wanted to rush this episode out considering the current nature of what we’re dealing with on this outbreak. Let’s get to the interview.
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I have Daniel Seidler, Founder, and Owner of TelePT Solutions, a consulting firm to provide telehealth services for physical therapists. He also is a telehealth Physical Therapist himself. He’s got a great story that I want to share with everybody. The topic that we’re going to cover is rather timely. First off, Daniel, thanks for coming on. I appreciate it.
Thank you, Nathan. I appreciate you having me. We talked and realized that we should record this podcast as soon as possible. You made it happen, so thanks for that.
Thanks for coming on. We want to talk about telehealth services in regards to PT, especially as it’s going to affect our services here by the Coronavirus and what’s happening. It’s considered a pandemic. Before we get into that a little bit for the benefit of the readers, if you can share a little bit of your professional story and what got you to where you’re at this point.
I’ve been a PT since 1996. I owned a practice in the Bronx in New York for fifteen years. We were acquired by a larger group and I worked for them for three years, MOTION Physical Therapy and helped develop their telehealth practice, the division of telehealth at MOTION. I decided to go out and start my telehealth practice and help other groups to get telehealth off the ground. I never imagined this scenario would arise but either way, the time is here for telehealth for medicine and physical therapy.
I’m sure you couldn’t have predicted that a flu pandemic like this would break out and soon after, the need for your services would be almost immediate. It was great to hear that you’ve gotten established quickly for people who want to get to your website ASAP. What is the website and how can they get in contact with you?
It’s TelePTSolutions.com. That’s the best way to reach us. All the other information is on there.
Thanks for sharing your story. Tell us a little bit about Telehealth PT services. Let’s start answering some of the general questions that you get from PT owners and providers on a regular basis.
The first question I usually get is, “Can I do this on my phone? Can I FaceTime or Skype?” The answer to that is no, you need a secure platform. There are plenty of platforms out there that look a lot like Zoom or FaceTime but they secure the communication on both ends to and from the practitioner and the patient. The audio and video can’t be stolen and intercepted. It’s secure in both directions.
Do providers need to find something that’s going to be shown to be HIPAA-compliant?
HIPAA-compliant and the platform will require a BAA, which is a Business Associate Agreement.
Between the PT company and the software provider as well, that’s pretty easy to get that at Zoom?
There are a bunch of software programs. The ones that are most adapted to PT are Doxy.me, BlueJay and Physitrack, and some of them have exercises built-in. A couple of them were built as home exercise programs. Some of the home exercise programs are adding telehealth to their platforms as well making it easy for PTs to do telehealth.
Do you have to have the patient sign anything different or can you use your typical intake paperwork for this?
It’s very similar. You would have them do your typical intake. Any information that you can get in advance is easiest. The answer to a lot of questions about telehealth is different from every state. Different states have different rules about consent. Consent can be verbal, digital or on a sign on paper, and every state is a little bit different. New York State requires only verbal consent. I’m not sure about Alaska and other States but that information is out there.
Do you get patient consent to do telehealth services?
That’s right.
If people wanted to find out those regulations as it pertains to their state, is there a website that has accumulated that information into one website or do you simply have to go through your own state by-laws.
That’s always the best idea to go to your State Practice Act and most States at this point have some verbiage about telehealth. One central resource is CCHPCA, which is the Center for Connected Health Policy. They’re based in California. They’ve done the research and plenty of documentation about the changing telehealth laws and they keep it up-to-date.
Telehealth is an opportunity to spread practitioners’ geographic reach so they can treat patients in other counties and states. Click To TweetAre there some states that simply don’t allow telehealth services?
In some capacity, every state allows it, not necessarily for PT though. It’s CCHPCA.org.
You find the software program that you’re going to use, you sign the BAA, you have the patient’s consent to do telehealth services. Your treatment is like any other except you can’t touch them.
That’s the simplest form. If you’re an independent PT and let’s say you treat a patient in their home or at the gym on a regular basis and you have an ongoing relationship with them as a patient-client relationship but they can’t make it to one of their visits. It’s as simple as that. You have communication. Say, “I’m going to send you a ping. You click on this link, it will take us both to this conference to this BlueJay page and we’ll do a telehealth session.” That type of session is going to be you much like when you start most PT visits, “How are you? What’s going on in your life? What’s happened since the last time I saw you? What feels good and what doesn’t?”
The subjective stuff, the conversational, comfortable things that you’re going to talk about with a patient. That guides your visit like any other visit. If they need to, they can do a warm-up on their own. Someone who you’re seeing on a regular basis via telehealth, may heat up a heating pad and sit with it for fifteen minutes before your telehealth session so that they’re ready for you going in. Warm-up depending on if they have some exercise equipment at home, they might ride a bike or do whatever warm-up they might do at the beginning of the session. You can guide them through that or have them prepare to do that before you get on the phone with them or visit them.
What are some of your limitations outside of the manual when you can’t get yours on them? What do you find is the most difficult thing in treating patients over the phone or through the software?
It depends on the patient and their set-up. I’ve found that most patients are doing their sessions with a phone. They have to have a good place to put that phone. When you’re in front of somebody, you can see their whole body like three feet away from you. With a phone, it’s a little bit different. Different accommodations work. You can use speakerphone with some patients in some situations. I always find that wireless earbuds are the best thing for the patient to be wearing so that they can move without a wire. They can hear you, you can hear them.
AirPods are ideal or something similar to that. That one challenge is having a visual and see the patient. The patient might think, “You have to see my arm move.” You want to see their whole torso move. You might want to see how the trunk is moving well or even if they’re bending their knees as they try to reach overhead or whatever it may be. That can be a challenge. Technology is always a challenge. It seems, for us, as the practitioner who’s become used to using the software and it’s very simple for me. On the other side, it takes some understanding from the patient.
Especially for those who are not technologically competent, I’m sure that’s got to be difficult sometimes.
You’ve been on the phone with somebody who can’t quite figure out how to use their phone. A phone conversation sometimes can be tough.
Do you usually share some of these things with them ahead of time like, “Here’s what is going to make our telehealth visits most successful? Make sure you have wireless earbuds, have your phone set up at a distance where I can see your whole body or you have a telephone stand if you’re using one.” Do you list some of those things out for them?
I have a checklist for the patient and practitioners. The other complication or challenge can always be the Wi-Fi or the connection. That depends, sometimes it’s perfect. Other times, it’s all over the place. You do have to have a contingency plan. You have to have a backup, “If we get disconnected, we’re going to reconnect like this, I’ll call you, I’ll ping you back,” or whatever is going to work for that situation.
You treat as much as you can over the software program. Do you bill as if you had seen them in person with the same CPT codes and time services and all that kind of stuff?
That’s right. Typically, Medicare does not pay for telehealth services for PT.
We can’t expect to get anything from our Medicare patients, unfortunately. These are the people that might be home down more than the others during this outbreak.
I have reached out to people I know who were in Washington who might have the ear of the government to get some accommodations on that. At this point, we all know someone in their 60s, 70s or 80s who is reluctant to go outside and probably is not attending PT right now even if they need it. It’s important that those services get covered.
There are lobbyists out there that are pushing for it. If there was a way for physical therapists to do some footwork at the grassroots level to push a little bit, is there any way they can do that?
I wish I had a solid answer. The best thing to do is to speak with the APTA and to your local representatives, whether it’s local reps or federal government. It’s the federal government because it’s Medicare. I don’t know if it’s on their radar right now or not but I would think it has to be.
If some of these PT owners could flood the APTA who have lobbyists set already too, “We need to push Medicare somehow to continue to provide these services to the patients that are home-bound during the pandemic.” That would be huge, I would imagine.
You would ask about billing and coding.
The billing and coding and then to follow up, since we’re talking about Medicare, after you’re talking about CPT codes and what insurances do pay for and who can we focus on?
It’s different by state. I have found in New York that most of the commercial payers are paying, most Medicaid does cover all teleservices and managed Medicaid. I’m not sure that every state has the same arrangement but administrators of Medicaid.
It’s a matter of the owners simply need to sit down and start calling.
Speak with your payers and make sure you speak with the right person. Sometimes that first rep that you get on the call has no idea what telehealth is. They don’t know. They don’t see it right in front of them and they’re not sure. A supervisor is your best bet.
With your consulting firm, have you made some of those calls on the behalf of some of your clients in different States or do you have some of that footwork already prepared?
I’ve only covered New York as far as that goes with the clients, but I’ve gotten some feedback from people in some other states that are telling me mixed things. Some payers are paying, some are not.
It’s up to the individual PT owners to get someone to start making those calls.
As you alluded to, that is part of what we do. If someone does need assistance for that, we’re definitely on board. I can be very helpful. I assisted in a lot of calls in New York so I know the conversation.
It’s good to hear that people can reach out to you. It’s the person that you talked to, the verbiage that you use, don’t take the first answer as the truth as these people are making the call and looking through your contracts and getting that figured out. In terms of billing and coding then, it’s the same CPT codes, but there’s a modifier.
Most are asking for the modified GT for telehealth and many require that you change the place of service to 02. For outpatient PT or outpatient services, typically is eleven. It’s one of those things that’s defaulted in most CMRs. Most practitioners have no idea that it even goes in. When you submit a claim, the number eleven goes to the payer. That field needs to be filled with a 02 to indicate that it’s telehealth.
As you’ve done some of the billing, are you getting denials initially and there have to appeals or are they easy and good about paying considering the modifier and the place of service?
I haven’t seen any denials. I and my clients haven’t taken too many chances yet. We’ve gone for the ones that we know will pay. I’m at that point right now where there’s more and more demand. Patients want services and we’re going to give you a shot with other payers.
What do you find as you’re doing some of this consulting? What are some of the hurdles that you have to prepare the owners for and those coming up against that you have to address?
Part of it is practitioner buy-in. For some PTs, it’s completely something new. People don’t love change but this environment changes that a little bit. It changes people’s mindset a little bit. People are in survival mode and realize that they want to work, they want to reach out to their patients, that patients need the care. They’re not going to get it otherwise. It’s been a challenge but I suspect that might change. If a PT is sitting around with no patients, they would want to make contact with that patient.
They’ll get some buy-in pretty quick then.
It’s similar on the other side where some patients are very eager to do telehealth because it’s so convenient. It’s easy but others are not. I always say it’s not for every patient, not for every visit but situations change things.
Can PTAs do these in calls?
It depends on the state. In New York, the best answer I’ve gotten is no. I’m unsure, to be honest with you. I’m hedging a little bit, but we’re going with no in New York right now.
That would be up to the owners to call the insurance companies and ask that specific question, I’m assuming.
It’s based on the contract. Its two different things. You do have to follow the state law and your State Practice Act and you do have to follow the reimbursement rules or laws from your insurance company if you expect to get paid. We do have clients who do all cash so they only have to follow the state law that they’re in. There is no concern for what the payors at. We haven’t talked about it yet but another thing to follow is a lot of practitioners now in telehealth recognize it. It’s an opportunity to spread their geographic reach so they can treat patients in other counties and states. You do have to be licensed in the state that the patient lives in order to treat there.
You could live in Washington and do a telehealth call to Alaska if you have an Alaska PT license. You can’t do a telehealth call to Alaska if you only have a Washington license.
To add to that, there is what’s called the PT Compact. The compact is an agreement with, I believe it’s eighteen states at this point where if you’re licensed in one of those eighteen states, you can get the right to treat in one of the other compact states. Without getting a full-blown license, you can still treat those other states.
Do you have to go through a process in order to get that right?
Each state in the compact has its own process, whether it pays a fee or pass the jurisprudence tests or get approval from your state. Every state is different.
How can we find out about the PT compact from the states involved?
It’s PTCompact.org.
Is that PT compact only for telehealth services?
I don’t think so. I believe it’s the right to treat in any state in the compact.
If you live near the border, you could cross state lines and do a home health visit in another state?
I’m sure that’s how it started and telehealth got the ball rolling in further.
To back up a little bit, if someone’s billing for some of these services, it’s the CPT code and the GT modifier on top of the other modifiers that they’re using. Whether you go 1st, 2nd or 3rd, it doesn’t matter.
I haven’t heard that it matters. You’re going to be billing and my experience thus far has been billing for an evaluation, if you do one or re-evaluation, it’s 97161. If you are billing for therapeutic exercise, that’s 97110. Neuromuscular re-ed, it’s 97112. Therapeutic activity, that’s in 97530. It’s limited to that. You could get into 97535 or 97537, I believe it is. It’s a functional activity like home activities. Reorient the community, that’s community reorientation.
What are some of the difficulties than from the patient side? What are some of their complaints as they’re going through this? Is it either they like it or they don’t or do you hear some of the same concerns?
I don’t know if they can’t stand the sound of my voice in their ears. They don’t like how they look on camera. That is one. Some people are very uncomfortable doing video calls which I get it. You get past that quickly. The biggest thing is you’re not getting that physical touch. I encourage people to use foam rollers, physio balls, get some of their own home equipment because as we know as PTs, they should be doing home exercises anyway. They should be managing their chronic pain. This is a great way to get them off on the right foot.
How is compliance? Do you have a cancel rate or a no-show rate?
I’m pretty persistent. My patient’s schedule is not that packed. I’ll find a time for most patients to get in on that day. That is a good thing, meaning flexibility. If someone can’t do their 10:00, you don’t want to make an open schedule then you’ll have that. If someone can’t make their 10:00, they can see you at 2:00 and make that work because you’re there and it’s at their convenience. I try to make it that way.
Your documentation is no different than when you see them in-house?
That’s true. You want to document that you’re doing a visit by telehealth secure remote video call.
Where do you put that? Somewhere in the objective?
It doesn’t matter, as long as it’s on there.
You use the same EMR system. You use this software program with a BAA and it’s HIPAA-compliant. You do the same therapy that you would without the manual. Your billing is the same CPT codes with an additional modifier and a place of service is changed. Make sure you’re dealing with the right insurance companies.
I like to take advantage of the fact that we work in the patient’s home or at their office. There’s the opportunity to do an ergonomic assessment of their desk. There’s an opportunity to have them put some plates into a cabinet, do some functional activities, how difficult to open a door or go to a window or something like that. I haven’t done any of these treatments of patients with vestibular issues, but I had a very long conversation with someone who does. She makes sure that the patient is in a very safe environment. For her vestibular patients, she does their sessions with them standing in a corner. Nothing else around. They put the phone on a nice platform where it can video them while they’re doing their program while they’re standing in the corner so that they have something to grab onto at all times.
Back pain heals because patients understand what's going on with them better. Click To TweetHow does marketing go? Are the doctors receptive to some of this especially now, I’d assume they are more receptive? What is your response from the physicians?
The real answer is everybody’s first response is how you can do physical therapy if you can’t touch the person. I’ve always believed that that’s a perception of what PT is a problem. Many people still think it’s massage and hamstring stretching. That’s a problem within our profession. I’ve addressed that forever and I continue to address it. This is another opportunity for us to speak for our profession and say we do so much more about education. Back pain heals because patients understand what’s going on with them better. That’s how people get better. That’s a lot of it. Once that conversation happens in the right tone and manner, most people tend to be a lot more receptive.
You get referrals directly from physicians to specifically provide telehealth PT services.
I have not marketed it in that way. I haven’t pushed it hard in that way but I suspect that it will start happening very soon and not just for me but across the board.
Have you marketed directly to a consumer and gotten patients? How do you get most of your patients this time? You have direct access in marketing your telehealth services directly to the consumer and they’re calling you up and starting the therapy.
They either hit on the website or calling. I have some other online referral sources that refer directly to me. I have not made a big push on social media yet. There are regulations.
Advertising for pain relief and that kind of stuff.
Particularly in New York is tough about that. My methodology has always been when I had a brick and mortar practice was we’d put information out there. It’s about being a source of information showing you professional knowledge, people respect that and want to learn more from you.
What is your website? How can people reach out to you?
What I’m getting from this is number one, it’s not as hard as people might expect it to be. The ins and outs and intricacies are a place where someone like you could help out quite a bit as a consultant and getting this branch or this section of their PT practice off the ground. I’m thinking, not for this pandemic but also snow days. Like here in Alaska, I’m thinking it would be great if you could offer this service to people who live out in the bush that simply don’t want to live near other people and don’t want to drive two hours for PT three times a week. There are opportunities there for sure, for people to provide those services. It’s time that you established your business to help people out like this.
Thank you and I’m looking at this. This is an impetus to get telehealth into the mainstream. I don’t think it’s a fad or it’s something that’s going to go away when this pandemic is gone. It might be the thing that makes people comfortable with it. Look at where demographics are going and how people are working now. A lot more people are working from home and recognizing that they can access stores and food via the internet right from the comfort of their homes. It’s not every patient or visit, but if you have a total knee replacement and you’re expected to go to physical therapy three times a week, maybe you’d go into the office twice a week and the third visit, you do via telehealth. It’s convenient.
Even more simply, what about the mother or father that has a child sick at home and they can’t leave? Instead of canceling that visit to the out-patient facility, they do their services over the internet. It can be so great. If a patient cancels, no shows or if there’s a drop in a provider’s schedule, they can make some of those calls to people who couldn’t make it and say, “Let’s do it right now if you’ve got time.” There’s an opportunity.
Different groups are looking to do exactly what you said in different ways. Some will have the same PT treat that patient later in the day. If that patient doesn’t have so much flexibility in their schedule, they might have someone who only does telehealth visits. They might even outsource to a particular group or PT that never comes into their office and just does their coverage work for those next visits. There are plenty of opportunities out there and plenty of ways for us to reach out to patients and our patients to reach us. That’s what this is about.
At this point, the important thing is to make sure providers recognize that this is an option, that there are people like you out there that can help them. Lastly, they need to push at the federal level to make sure these telehealth services are covered. Is there anything else you want to share, Daniel?
Be safe out there. It’s crazy times. We’ll all get through this. Telehealth and other services like this are ways for us to be smart and handle a challenging situation. Going forward, it will be something a lot more fun for us to do.
Telehealth and other services like this are ways for us to be smart and handle a challenging situation. Click To TweetOut of every challenge comes an opportunity. Thanks for your time, Daniel. I appreciate you reaching out.
Thank you, Nathan.
It was timely that you did so. I’m glad that we’re putting this out.
I appreciate it. I’ll be in touch again soon.
Thanks.
Important Links:
- TelePT Solutions
- MOTION Physical Therapy
- Doxy.me
- CCHPCA.org
- BlueJay
- PTCompact.org
- https://TelePTSolutions.com/
About Daniel Seidler
Daniel Seidler, PT, MS
Daniel is an experienced Physical Therapist, healthcare innovator, entrepreneur and executive. He grew his practice in the Bronx, NY to three successful locations before being acquired by a regional multi-site group. Daniel developed and launched the company’s telehealth program in early 2019.
Daniel’s passion for PT and desire to dramatically improve care delivery models inspired him to formalize his telehealth PT education programs and offer them through TelePT Solutions.
Daniel now treats remotely, coaches PTs to be telehealth specialists and consults owners on building successful telehealth practices.
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