One of the primary factors that control salaries of long term care therapists is the reimbursement fee schedule that is established by Medicare. Basically, dollar amounts are set for various levels of care, and each higher category means a higher reimbursement rate. Therapy minutes ...

  One of the questions I get asked often is why I remain a COTA, and not further my degree to an OTR. This is a question I ask myself, and as much as the change would be nice sometimes, there are many reasons why I remain a COTA. Of course the educational factor is first. As much as I enjoy school, the things that come with it such as ...

  Good day, everyone!  I hope you are all keeping warm (no comment from you all in the perpetually warm climates!).  Keeping warm...now there's a challenge!  I have lived in cold climates for the majority of my life, which began in Rome, New York.  I remember the snow blizzard of '62 (that's 1962 for all of you born ...

  Healthcare reform, the economic depression, reduced insurance reimbursements, Medicare and Medicaid cutbacks, how will this affect the future of the COTA?             Some people are quite nervous right now, thinking that Obama's healthcare reform will eliminate the COTA position. ...

    Welcome!  I want to take a moment to thank all of you returning bloggers, as well as those of you who are visiting my blog for the first time!  I enjoy your comments and your questions.  Keep them coming!  It is exciting to connect with people in New Zealand, New York, Pennsylvania...and never have to leave my ...

  Well, I must admit that talking to others with different experiences and listening to the other side of the story is one good way to learn. This past weekend my thoughts were changed on the health care reform issues, and simply by listening to another opinion from someone who sees another side of the story. ...

  Changes in Medicare funding for skilled nursing facilities happened just a few days ago on October 1st. These changes will cut deeper into the budgets of all Skilled Nursing Facilities (SNF's), but the impact will be felt more in smaller SNF's.  With strained budgets, it will more than likely affect the quality of care our senior ...

  Sometimes family members of some of my patients are so clueless it really makes me wonder what they are thinking. Some seem to think therapy is a magic bullet, and we can cure any problem. In the past, there have been a couple of real backward thinking people I've dealt with, but just recently there has been a couple people that have ...

           News from some of the town hall meetings that have been happening around the country reminds me of the Vietnam War protests of the late 60's. Large organized groups of people protesting issues with proposed government actions. There were protesters carrying signs with defaced pictures of ...

         I know, kind of a sick topic for a blog, huh? However were you aware that Congress is currently discussing this topic as a part of the Health Care Reform bill? Yes it's true, now the government wants to tell us when we need to end our life and stop being a burden to Medicare ...