Jim Isom Letter

POPTS Letter from Orthopaedic Specialists of Alabama CEO and former BONES President Jim Isom

There is currently a national campaign underway to restrict physician practices from employing physical therapists, and as a result, prevent physicians from providing physical therapy services in their medical practice. Both the national and local state chapters of the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA) are aggressively and strategically passing legislation that is added to each state’s Physical Therapy Practice Acts which makes it illegal for physical therapists to work in physician offices.

Legislation has been passed in both Delaware and, most recently, South Carolina, that restricts the licensed physical therapist from working in physician clinics. The language already existed in their Physical Therapy Practice Acts, but recently a national agenda of the APTA sought opinions from each state’s Attorney General’s Office which they used to pressure the Physical Therapy Licensure Boards in those states to actively enforce this restriction to those physical therapists licensed in their respective states. Obviously, no sanctions can be applied to the physicians; however, therapists discovered working for physicians could have their licenses revoked or suspended with punitive fines.

Much of the leadership of the national chapter of the APTA is actively involved in ownership of outpatient private practice physical therapy clinics. Although it has been a long-standing right (recently reinforced by Stark II), for physicians to provide physical therapy services, MRI, and other ancillary services as “incident to” their group practices, the APTA is trying to restrict physicians’ scope of services by back dooring this methodology. This is a monetary issue to private practice physical therapists who wish to ensure the profitability of their own outpatient clinics. Their self-serving argument presented to state legislatures will be physician over-utilization, quality care issues, freedom of patient choice, and anti-trust.

A brief history of the APTA is helpful in understanding their efforts to limit physicians’ scope of services in this concentrated national campaign against us. In 2003, the APTA Board of Directors voted as a top priority of its Strategic Plan to prevent Physician Owned Therapy Services (POPTS). In June of 2003 a formal task force was created, headed up by a physical therapist who serves as the Treasurer of the APTA. Enclosed is a copy of the task force strategic plan for a national campaign against physician owned physical therapy services. It cited as a first priority the review of all 50 states’ Physical Therapy Practice Acts to see if favorable language already existed that could restrict physician ownership. To my knowledge they identified eight states that already had such favorable language for their cause. In those states they have contacted the local chapters to form grass roots efforts to seek a favorable opinion letter from the Attorney General’s office and to pressure state legislatures to enforce those opinions.

I feel that this issue is critical to all physician groups. If our physician practices are limited in our scope of services by individual licensure boards preventing health care practitioners from employment with us, then what is next? Radiological techs, nurses, physician assistants, athletic trainers, etc. This has both a tremendous quality of care, as well as a financial, impact on physician based practices throughout the nation. It is imperative that we recognize these efforts and disseminate information to respective parties that can thwart these physician-oriented attacks.

Jim Isom
CEO
Orthopaedic Specialists of Alabama, P.C.

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Jim Isom Letter

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Home About EPTA Membership State Info. Articles & News Calendar Contact Us FAQ Anti-Popts Arguments Regulatory Threats Opposition Strategy Lobbying Threats Message Board Members Only	*POPTS Letter from Orthopaedic Specialists of Alabama CEO and former BONES President Jim Isom* There is currently a national campaign underway to restrict physician practices from employing physical therapists, and as a result, prevent physicians from providing physical therapy services in their medical practice. Both the national and local state chapters of the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA) are aggressively and strategically passing legislation that is added to each state’s Physical Therapy Practice Acts which makes it illegal for physical therapists to work in physician offices. Legislation has been passed in both Delaware and, most recently, South Carolina, that restricts the licensed physical therapist from working in physician clinics. The language already existed in their Physical Therapy Practice Acts, but recently a national agenda of the APTA sought opinions from each state’s Attorney General’s Office which they used to pressure the Physical Therapy Licensure Boards in those states to actively enforce this restriction to those physical therapists licensed in their respective states. Obviously, no sanctions can be applied to the physicians; however, therapists discovered working for physicians could have their licenses revoked or suspended with punitive fines. Much of the leadership of the national chapter of the APTA is actively involved in ownership of outpatient private practice physical therapy clinics. Although it has been a long-standing right (recently reinforced by Stark II), for physicians to provide physical therapy services, MRI, and other ancillary services as “incident to” their group practices, the APTA is trying to restrict physicians’ scope of services by back dooring this methodology. This is a monetary issue to private practice physical therapists who wish to ensure the profitability of their own outpatient clinics. Their self-serving argument presented to state legislatures will be physician over-utilization, quality care issues, freedom of patient choice, and anti-trust. A brief history of the APTA is helpful in understanding their efforts to limit physicians’ scope of services in this concentrated national campaign against us. In 2003, the APTA Board of Directors voted as a top priority of its Strategic Plan to prevent Physician Owned Therapy Services (POPTS). In June of 2003 a formal task force was created, headed up by a physical therapist who serves as the Treasurer of the APTA. Enclosed is a copy of the task force strategic plan for a national campaign against physician owned physical therapy services. It cited as a first priority the review of all 50 states’ Physical Therapy Practice Acts to see if favorable language already existed that could restrict physician ownership. To my knowledge they identified eight states that already had such favorable language for their cause. In those states they have contacted the local chapters to form grass roots efforts to seek a favorable opinion letter from the Attorney General’s office and to pressure state legislatures to enforce those opinions. I feel that this issue is critical to all physician groups. If our physician practices are limited in our scope of services by individual licensure boards preventing health care practitioners from employment with us, then what is next? Radiological techs, nurses, physician assistants, athletic trainers, etc. This has both a tremendous quality of care, as well as a financial, impact on physician based practices throughout the nation. It is imperative that we recognize these efforts and disseminate information to respective parties that can thwart these physician-oriented attacks. Jim Isom CEO Orthopaedic Specialists of Alabama, P.C. Download and Print This Article Below Jim Isom Letter