Vermont Business Magazine Many patients who would benefit from supervised exercise therapy offered at cardiac rehabilitation programs, like the one at Southwestern Vermont Medical Center (SVMC), don’t know that Medicare covers the expense. Care was extended for stable yet chronic heart failure (CHF) patients in 2014 and for peripheral artery disease (PAD) patients last year.
“Exercise can be tremendously powerful for patients with these conditions,” said Scott Rogge, cardiologist with SVMC Cardiology. “And cardiac rehab, in particular, has been shown to reduce mortality. We’d like to encourage more patients to attend Cardiac Rehabilitation to reduce their cardiovascular risk factors and improve their quality of life.”
Medicare will cover physician-referred exercise for up to 36 30- to 60-minute sessions over a 12-week period for both conditions. The sessions must be conducted in a physician's office or outpatient facility, and must be delivered by "qualified auxiliary personnel" that includes physical therapists (PTs), nurses, and exercise physiologists. Supervision must be conducted by a physician or "non-physician practitioner"—a physician assistant, or nurse practitioner/clinical nurse specialist.
“SVMC’s Cardiac Rehab is not only staffed and equipped to deliver this therapy; many patients truly enjoy the company and support of the other patients they exercise with regularly at SVMC,” said the program’s Physical Therapist Robin Fraiser.
Cardiac Rehabilitation is also covered for patients who had experienced an acute myocardial infraction in the preceding year or who had undergone coronary artery bypass surgery, heart or heart-lung transplant, or other major events.
To receive coverage to attend Cardiac Rehab at SVMC, Medicare beneficiaries must have a face-to-face visit with a physician and be referred for the program. The physician visit must also include education on risk reduction. In some cases, additional sessions or a second set of 36 sessions are covered through another referral. Contact your primary care provider or cardiologist to learn if you qualify.
Southwestern Vermont Health Care (SVHC) is a comprehensive, preeminent, health care system providing exceptional, convenient, and affordable care to the communities of Bennington and Windham Counties of Vermont, eastern Rensselaer and Washington Counties of New York, and northern Berkshire County in Massachusetts. SVHC includes Southwestern Vermont Medical Center (SVMC), Southwestern Vermont Regional Cancer Center, the Centers for Living and Rehabilitation, and the SVHC Foundation. SVMC includes 25 primary and specialty care practices.
Source: Bennington, VT—June 19, 2018—svhealthcare.org.