Now Available: ASHA’s Analysis of 2021 Medicare Fee Schedule for Audiologists and Speech-Language Pathologists

ASHA's 2021 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS) resources for audiologists and speech-language pathologists (SLPs) are now available on the Medicare outpatient payment webpage. The MPFS establishes Medicare Part B policies and payment rates for outpatient audiology and speech-language pathology services.

Key policies addressed in each MPFS analysis include significant Medicare payment cuts for audiology and speech-language pathology services, new codes for vestibular and auditory evoked potential testing, communication technology-based services, telehealth, and quality measures. The documents also provide 2021 national payment rates, as well as 2020 rates for comparison to help audiologists and SLPs estimate the impact of the payment cuts.

Most speech-language pathology services provided in hospital outpatient settings are also based on the MPFS. However, a separate payment system—the hospital outpatient prospective payment system (OPPS)—applies to audiology services provided in hospital outpatient departments. The 2021 hospital OPPS was released after the MPFS, so ASHA will provide a separate analysis on the Medicare outpatient payment webpage later this week.

ASHA Resources

• 2021 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule for Audiologists [PDF]
• 2021 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule for Speech-Language Pathologists [PDF]
• Write your members of Congress to ask them to address the 2021 Medicare payment cuts to audiology and speech-language pathology services.

Questions?

Please email reimbursement@asha.org with questions regarding the MFPS or hospital OPPS.