美国理疗保健 2024年度报告

Over the past four years, our industry has been under tremendous pressure with respect to reimbursement from Federalpayors. This is especially true of Medicare, which represents approximately one-third of our payor mix. Physical therapywas not the intended target of these reductions, but we were, in fact, caught up in them as “collateral damage”. Thephysician fee schedule “budget neutrality” provisions were enacted several years ago to target the highest earning physicianspecialists (which we are clearly not) to pay for needed primary care increases. Unfortunately, the organizations that makerecommendations on how to apportion reductions don’t always get it right, and physical therapy was inadvertently caught inthe middle. Arguably, and I know that I am biased, physical therapy intervention is one of thebest values in healthcare today. The Alliance for Physical Therapy Quality and Innovation (APTQI), which advocates on the part of our profession,commissioned an independent study several years ago involving patients with low back pain. This study involved Medicarebeneficiaries and differentiated those who obtained physical therapy early on versus a path involving other interventionsincluding injections, pharmaceuticals, and even bedrest to solve the issue. What we learned is that a completed treatmentregimen for low back pain that is physical therapy-centric results in significantly less cost for resolution of that issue.Evenmore importantly, those who completed a course of physical therapy incurred less total healthcare spend over thenext year as compared to patients who addressed their issue in a different manner. Why do we think that is?Through a carefully designed course of physical therapy, the underlying issues that resulted in aparticular pain or functional problem are addressed. Not only does a patient’s pain abate, but underlying function improves.In short, they move better and more easily, they are able to do more without fatigue or pain, and they are stronger and moreresilient. And what happens when these functional markers improve? They move more. They garden and walk and engagemore with friends and family. Their health outlook improves. And, with activity as well as social engagement, other importantmarkers are believed to improve as well, resulting in higher quality of life. In my opinion, and in the opinion of a great many of our nation’s lawmakers, we should not continue to be the target ofreimbursement cuts when our care prevents many more costly interventions, is quick and efficient, and saves the system indownstream medical costs, among other significant attributes. Despite these reductions, which included an approximate 2% reduction inMedicare reimbursement for 2024: •We successfully drove demand for our PT services to an all-time high;•We establishedmonthly records for visits per clinic per dayin 9 of the 12 months in 2024;•We setquarterly records for visits per clinic per dayin Q2, Q3 and Q4 of 2024•Weincreased total revenue 11%, despite the Medicare reductions we absorbed•Weincreased our net rate to $104.71in 2024 from $102.80 in 2023, due in large part to successful commercial contractrenegotiations, coupled with an increase in volume of our higher paying worker’s compensation business.•Weopened 29 physical therapylocations and completed acquisitionsadding another 74 locations, which includedentering three new states: New York, Colorado, and Utah.•We completed anacquisition in our injury prevention businesswhich has generated phenomenal growthand service delivery•Revenues from our IIP business increased approximately 24% for the year and ourprofit from IIP operations improved22%compared to 2023. And we were able to do all of this while keeping our balance sheet strong. We have more work to do in 2025 and beyond We have more work to do in 2025 and beyond, particularly in cost rationalization, which has been difficult in light of recorddemand and a very competitive hiring environment. Our team is focused on rolling out new technology that will enableour partnerships to better control staffing-related costs in 2025. And, we have a few new things that we are working on aswell from a care delivery standpoint that we are not quite ready to discuss yet, but that we believe will be beneficial to ourcontinued growth in the future. In closing, let me say that we understand that repetitive and persistent Federal reimbursement cuts have created challengesthat have impacted our business.However, we are a resilient group with a great deal of tenacity and a fervent belief inour Company and in physical therapy in general.We know that our services touch the lives of so many, allowing them toregain lost function, to move free of pain again, to pursue the things they dream about doing, and to provide for themselvesand their families. We have work to do as well and, rest assured, we are approaching every day with an intensity of focus toachieve the things that are important to the lives of our