Governor Signs Direct Access Legislation into Law

NYPTA achieved its long time goal of direct access in New York on July 26th when Governor Pataki signed S.3169 into law. New York State is the 43rd state to allow consumers to directly access the services of a physical therapist with minor limitations. The law takes effect 120 days after July 26th. "We couldn't be happier" said NYPTA President James Dunleavy. "It was long, long over due but worth the wait".

The new law allows consumers to directly access the services of a physical therapist for 10 visits or for a period of 30 days, whichever occurs first. Additionally, the physical therapist needs to have 3 years of practice experience to provide direct access services. Lastly, the legislation stipulates that the physical therapist needs to inform the consumer in writing that insurance may not cover the service and charges the State Education Department to develop the specific form's format to meet this requirement. A copy of the Physical Therapy Practice Act, as amended by S3169, is found elsewhere in this newsletter.

While NYPTA had hoped to achieve "unrestricted direct access", passage of this bill would not have occurred without the above modifications. Even with these limitations, the new law is significantly less restrictive than many of the recently passed direct access statutes in other states.

The law does not change the requirement under the insurance law that health insurers need only cover physical therapy rendered pursuant to a referral. Also, as part of the compromise process, the bill amends the insurance law to make explicit that a referral is required for purposes of no-fault. The no fault amendment means that patients with a claim under the no-fault program would not be eligible for reimbursement for physical therapy services without a referral. This requirement is in keeping with no fault's current practice.

"Obtaining passage of direct access legislation took years of hard work" said Patrick VanBeveren, Chair of the NYPTA Legislative Committee. "It would be impossible to list all of the people who have contributed time, money and effort toward getting this bill passed, but we would not have been successful without the active support of the membership" he added. The Senate moved quickly to pass this bill by the end of June and the Assembly did likewise soon after. By mid-July the bill was delivered to Governor Pataki and he signed the legislation into law ten days later.

NYPTA has been pursuing direct access legislation on behalf of consumers of physical therapy services in New York State for nearly 25 years. In the process of working toward passage of direct access legislation, NYPTA has created a strong grass roots network, established itself in New York governmental and regulatory circles and formed many relationships with the state legislature in both houses. These assets will assist NYPTA as it pursues its future legislative agenda. "This is just the first step. NYPTA will build on the momentum of direct access as we address the many pressing needs of the profession" said President James Dunleavy. NYPTA's future steps will include making the membership, as well as nonmember physical therapists, aware of the legislation; informing the public; working with insurance companies to insure that direct access services are reimbursed; and to work on legislation to remove restrictions.

NYPTA is grateful to all the members who took part in this process that has resulted in a significant benefit to all those patients who need timely and direct access to physical therapy services. Without all of your assistance, NYPTA would not have achieved direct access for consumers.