People like to gamble, they place bets to have fun or to earn extra cash. When they feel lucky or when someone is watching over them, they simply want to take a chance, to prove that fortune smiles on them, and betting / gambling is no exception.Praying to God for a team to win a specific game in order for you to win a bet is more or less selfish when there are still so many bad things in the world. But what about those ancient gods of the past, people believed in them and prayed to them for fortune. The different mythologies of the world reveal powerful deities that rule over the world of gambling. Here are some of the gods that can influence the outcome of a football match in our favor:Hermes is the Greek god of gambling, profit, hazard, and gaming. Hermes was the winged messenger of the gods. He was the god of flocks, road, trading, commerce, thieves. He is also known as Mercury in Roman Mythology. His father is Zeus, the ruler of the Greek gods.Thoth is the Egyptian god of gambling. He had the same attributes like the Greek god, Hermes. He is the creator of magic, the inventor of writing, the messenger of the gods and the divine record-keeper and mediator. According to myth, he earned 5 extra days by gambling with the moon (then known as Iabet) in a game of dice to help the sky goddess Nut to have her children.Macuilxochitl, (five flowers, also called Xochipilli) is the Aztec god of gambling, music, dancing. He was the god of games, from board games (Patolli) to the Aztec version of football (Ullamaliztli). Generally represented as a god of fun and dancing, Xochipilli could also send venereal disease to anyone who violates abstentions by engaging in sexual intercourse.Li-Nezha is the Chinese god of gambling. He is probably the only one of the Chinese Gods that can reveal the winning numbers in lottery. Li-Nezha is perhaps more well-known as Nataku or Nata from Japanese anime a half-mortal war god. In ancient times mortals worship him as a God of Lotteries and Gambling.Lakshmi, is the Hindu goddess of wealth, prosperity and fortune. Lakshmi is the consort of the god Vishnu. Hindus believe that anybody who worships Lakshmi sincerely, and not in greed, will be blessed with fortune and success. After worshipping Lakshmi on Diwali, many Hindus gamble and spend profusely, believing that Lakshmi has bestowed good fortune upon them.Nohoilpi – The gambling god of the Navajo. Also called “He Who Wins Men”. He is a renegade son of the sun god Tsohanoai. He came down to Earth and taught his gambling games to the various tribes but soon abused his power by overcoming them at all his games of chance and collecting his winnings by enslaving people to build a city to mark his glory. He was defeated at gambling by a Navajo man send by the other gods and was thrown into the sky.
Physical Therapy Education – Professional Careers in the Field
Find Physical Therapy Education in the United States and Canada. Some of the many career paths that individuals can take once they’ve attained the appropriate level of physical therapy education include professions as of course, therapists, administrators, clinicians, consultants, educators, and researchers, among others. Depending on the direction which you take through your physical therapy education, you can expect to work in clinics, hospitals, nursing homes and private homes, rehabilitation centers and other medical healthcare facilities.
With over 200 accredited physical therapy education programs from which to choose, prospective students can opt to participate in both Master Degree programs as well as Doctoral Degree programs. Once enrolled in a physical therapy education course, students learn about anatomy, biology, biomechanics, chemistry, human growth (and development), pathology, neuroanatomy and hands-on training in a variety of therapeutic methods. Additionally, physical therapy education students are often required to complete an internship or clinical training to successfully fulfill educational requirements. Upon degree achievement, graduates must gain licensure to practice in the United States. And, to maintain licensure, practicing physical therapists must take continuing physical therapy education.
Before you enroll in a physical therapy education program, it is important to note that the career field often requires individuals to be in top physical condition; as physical therapists do a lot of bending, kneeling, stooping, crouching and other physical repetitions throughout the course of the workday. However, the benefits of this service job far outweigh the physical aspects of the occupation: Career outlook for physical therapists is “expected to grow much faster than average” than other occupations through the coming years. As well, median annual earnings range between $60,000 and $88,000+. (Incomes commensurate with level of experience and physical therapy education.)
In addition to full-time physical therapist positions, physical therapy education programs are often offered to students with a desire to become occupational therapist assistants, physical therapist aides or assistants. These career-training programs include studies in anatomy, biology, chemistry, physiology and CPR and first aid, among other relative subject matter. Students who successfully complete one of over 200 accredited physical therapist assistant programs in the United States, will earn an Associate’s Degree, and will have gained certification in both CPR and first aid. Physical therapy education for aides and assistants doesn’t stop at the school level; a matter of fact, on-the-job training is frequently provided by most employers. In addition, physical therapy aides and assistants have a potential earnings’ range from $24,000 to $52,000 annually.
Furthermore, the scope of physical therapy education is not limited to conventional medicine. For example, continuing education is commonly offered in a variety of mind-body-spirit medicines like massage therapy, energy healing therapies, as well as holistic nutritional counseling.
If you (or someone you know) are interested in finding physical therapy education, let professional training within fast-growing industries like massage therapy, cosmetology, acupuncture, oriental medicine, Reiki, and others get you started! Explore career school programs near you.
Medicare Therapy Fraud – How to Combat Physical Therapy and Occupational Therapy False Claims
Physical therapy is the treatment of functional limitations to prevent the onset or to retard the progression of physical impairments following illness or injury. Medicare pays for physical therapy in at least two contexts:
I. Through the Part A hospital insurance benefit, Medicare pays for physical therapy as a component of skilled nursing care, in either the acute care setting or in a post-hospital skilled nursing facility. In order to qualify for reimbursement, such therapy must meet the criteria for skilled nursing care under 42 U.S.C. – 1495i. In order to qualify, a patient otherwise appropriate for Medicare must show a qualifying hospital stay of three or more days within the 30 days prior to entering the skilled nursing facility. A physician must order procedures for the patient that are appropriate to be performed only in a Skilled Nursing Facility (SNF), such as rehabilitative therapy, and must certify that the patient’s condition is such that he or she can practically be cared for only in a SNF. In so certifying, the physician must determine that the patient’s condition should improve or achieve stability in response to curative care. The SNF medical staff is required to write a plan of care for each skilled nursing patient based upon the individual’s needs and circumstances. Upon satisfaction of those requirements, Medicare will pay for 100 days of skilled nursing care per-patient per-illness period – though after the first 20 days a co-payment of 20% is required of the patient. Once a patient qualifies, Medicare bears all expenses of the skilled nursing facility, including the patient’s custodial care and room and board (custodial care is not otherwise covered by Medicare). Typically, an SNF receives approximately $650 per day from Medicare for a qualifying skilled nursing patient.
II. Additionally, through Part B supplemental insurance, Medicare reimburses for physical therapy under limited circumstances. In order to qualify for reimbursement, outpatient physical therapy services must: (1) be reasonable and medically necessary; (2) be furnished to a Medicare beneficiary under the care of a physician; (3) be furnished under a plan of care periodically recertified by a physician; and (4) be furnished by or under the direct supervision of qualified personnel.
Medicare regulations require that physical therapy services be performed either (1) by a State-licensed physical therapist or (2) by or “incident to” the services of a physician or other medical professional licensed to perform such services under State law pursuant to 42 C.F.R. § 410.60. Under the “incident to” rule, a physician may bill for physical therapy services performed by non-physician personnel so long as those services are (a) commonly furnished in a physician’s office and integral to a physician’s covered services; (b) included in a treatment plan designed by the physician and in which the physician is actively involved; and (c) furnished under the physician’s direct supervision.
In order to bill directly – rather than through a physician – a physical therapist must be State-licensed. Physical therapy services performed incident to a physician’s services may be performed by personnel without a license – however, such personnel must otherwise meet all qualifications of a licensed physical therapist including graduation from an approved physical therapy education program.
Regardless of who performs physical therapy services to be billed to Medicare or Medicaid, such services must be furnished in accordance with a sufficient plan of care established by a physician or by the licensed physical therapist who performs the services. Under 42 C.F.R. § 410.60, the plan must “prescribe[] the type, amount, frequency, and duration of the physical therapy… to be furnished to the individual, and indicate[] the diagnosis and anticipated goals.”
Abuse of the Therapy Medicare Benefit
Unfortunately, fraud in physical therapy is rampant. In 1994, the Office of Inspector General, Department of Health and Human Services published a report finding that 78% of physical therapy billed by physicians did not constitute true physical therapy. In 2006, OIG published another report, stating that a staggering 91% of physician physical therapy bills submitted in the first half of 2002 were deficient in at least one regard. Through intense investigation and research, we have identified and uncovered the following types of physical therapy fraud:
(a) billing for therapy services performed by unqualified personnel;
(b) billing for therapy services that were never performed or only partially performed;
(c) billing for therapy services when, in fact, the service performed was unskilled, or amounted to maintenance therapy, or both, and did not constitute physical therapy;
(d) billing for therapy services performed under a deficient plan of care;
(e) billing under individual therapy codes for group therapy services.
Under the federal and some state false claims acts, whistleblowers can file suit against fraudulent therapy and skilled nursing companies under seal and may share in as much as 25% (and in some circumstances 30%) of the award. Blowing the whistle on corporate fraud takes courage, however, and the law rewards that courage with certain protections. The False Claims Act provides for a whistleblower’s case to be filed under seal and for the identity of the whistleblower to be protected during the course of the government’s investigation. Further, federal laws protect against retaliation by mandating the reinstatement of wrongfully fired employees at the same seniority level, and an award of double back pay, interest, and attorneys’ fees. More than $22 billion of taxpayer funds have been recovered under the False Claims Act over the past two decades. Despite all of the efforts and success by government and private attorneys policing the Medicare program under the False Claims Act, the only way that such fraud can be fought effectively is for people with knowledge – industry insiders, administrators, nurses, and therapists – to come forward and say that enough is enough.