Treating Medicare patients

[Guest guest]

Can we as PTs treat immediate family members who are covered by Medicare? Each

of the references I’ve found (Feb. 27, 2004; March 1, 2006; Sept. 1, 2006; June

1, 2007 Trailblazers newsletter) indicates non-covered services for “charges to

Medicare for services furnished by a physician to his immediate relatives or

members of his household.” In a breakdown of who is considered a physician,

the designation I found a physical therapist to be listed under is “therapist”,

along with occupational therapists and speech-language pathologists. Nowhere

did I find physical therapist under the designation of physician. It can come

down to a simple case of semantics.

Thoughts?