As part of a number of new policies announced by CMS to help physicians and hospitals during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Post-Admission Physician Evaluation (PAPE) in inpatient rehabilitation facilities (IRF) has been waived by CMS. AAPM&R has long been advocating for streamlining IRF paperwork. Please see our letter from March 18 to CMS asking for various waivers, including a waiver of the PAPE, the three-hour rule, patient file audits, MIPS, and other regulations that have been waived by CMS in recent days and apply during the COVID-19 outbreak.

Regarding the PAPE waiver, CMS states, "Post-Admission Evaluations: Physicians are no longer required to conduct and document post-admission evaluations for Medicare patients admitted to an IRF. The post-admission evaluation covers much of the same information as continues to be included in the pre-admission screening of the patient and the patient’s plan of care. This reduction in burden gives more time for physicians to take care of patients." Find more information here.