Committee News – February 2026

AAC
The AAC Committee meets monthly on Zoom. All NJSHA members who are passionate about AAC, at all levels of experience, are welcome!

Higher Education
Students and faculty are also hard at work on conducting and preparing research to present at the upcoming NJSHA Convention.

Literacy
The Literacy Committee is actively working on the Parent/Caregiver Project. Our vision is to accumulate resources for new or soon-to-be parents that include information on language and reading milestones and activities to promote language and reading development. At the present time, we are reviewing different sites and videos to determine if they meet our criteria for inclusion on our final product. If anyone is interested in joining — please contact Karen Kimberlin or Laura Bligh. Our goal is to have a final product by the end of February.

Private Practice
The Private Practice Committee is looking for SLPs and AUDs interested in participated in our short-term projects:
1. Development of a member only directory for private practices in SLP and AUD to include languages spoken and specialization for referrals
2. Insurance-Legislative committee to monitor events and current information in NJ and beyond impacting our members
3. Mentoring Program which will include peer to peer support and the development of webinars, pop up Zoom presentations, and other materials to support our colleagues in private practice in all professions (no public speaking required); we are looking for people interested in participating in a panel discussion on private practice at NJSHA convention. Please reach out if this is something you are interested in participating in.
4. Website committee to explore what is on the site and what is needed. Our next meeting is December 9.
If you have any questions, please reach out to [email protected]

SAC
1. SAC was excited to collaborate with the AAC Committee in October for the Saturdays with SAC posts. Resources, information, and the Fall Learning Pass were shared through the social media posts.
2. SAC has scheduled an in-person networking opportunity – Sip and Chat with SAC – on March 21, 2026 from 10:00am-12:00pm

SEALS
ASHA’s Teacher Union Member Advisory Group has completed the revision of two resources that are now available for school-based speech-language pathologists (SLPs) who want to deepen their understanding of teacher unions and education associations:
a. Engaging With Teacher Unions and Education Associations, https://www.asha.org/slp/schools/advocacy-unions/
b. Working for Change: A Guide for Audiologists and Speech-Language Pathologists in Schools. https://www.asha.org/slp/schools/working-for-change/.
This comprehensive set of materials includes key terms to know, examples of bargaining language, a special collection of articles (https://pubs.asha.org/special-collections/engaging-with-teachers-unions) from ASHA Publications and more.

STARs/STAMP Report #1
State Advocates for Medicare Policy, October, 2025 Meeting
Jerry White, Director of Federal and Political Affairs for ASHA and Josh Krantz, Director of Federal Affairs, House Energy and Commerce Committee for ASHA reported on the government shut down. It was reported that it impacts 1/3 of the budget for discretionary spending and not mandatory spending such as covering Medicare and Medicaid payments.
Government shut downs rarely improve exact policy provisions or laws being passed. Republicans are looking to raise healthcare premiums impacting possibly 20-30 million people. The house of representatives passed the bill. The senate requires five more votes to pass the plan requiring 60 votes. Democrats are in favor of repealing Medicare cuts and repealing Affordable Care subsidies. Republicans are not negotiating. Political parties do not want to be blamed for government shut downs. There was concern originally that it would impact the elections for governor in Viriginia and New Jersey.
Healthcare bills are always attached to larger bills; therefore, it is difficult to see movement with specific bills. ASHA and other stake holders who are outliers help to move healthcare policies. The following bills are currently focused on:
A) Telehealth Care Access on a permanent basis
B) Medicare Advantage Plans: Prompt and Fair Pay in which members receive payment that is no less than the traditional Medicare payment plan
C) Medicare Advantage Plans: improve timely access to care without authorization requirements causing delays in caring for this population and the need for increased transparency
D) Medicare Choice Act: speech pathologists, audiologists along with occupational and physical therapists, and chiropractors to have the ability to opt out of Medicare payments for services. Currently, all these professions may not treat Medicare patients unless Medicare is billed.
Sarah Warren, Director, Health Care Regulatory Advocated for ASHA reported there are proposed geographic adjustment for reimbursement of CPT Codes. At this time, Centers of Medicare and Medicaid are not covering Telehealth. She is recommending the following options:
A) Patients return to in-person services
B) Claims may be held for six months from the date to submit claims which may be difficult for smaller private practices to endure this payment method
C) To be paid for telehealth services privately since it is not covered by federal law. Provide the patient with an ABN which holds the patient accountable for the bill if Telehealth is not retroactive. Telehealth may be covered moving forward once the government opens.
D) If Telehealth is retroactive then the speech pathologist must submit a claim to Medicare and reimburse the patient

STARs/STAMP Report #2
StAMP Committee Report for Navigating the Shift: Understanding the New Hearing Device Service CPT Codes
October 2025 StAMP Meeting 

Jerry White reported on the government shutdown and the continuing resolution that would extend medicare telehealth to November 21st if the government ends shut down before that time.
Since there was not much to report on due to the government shutdown this report includes a summary of the CY 2026 Physician Fee Schedule – Audiology Summary and CPT Code Impacts. 

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has finalized the 2026 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS), introducing essential updates that affect audiology services, payment methodologies, and coding. The conversion factor (CF) for 2026 is set at $33.40, marking a 3.26% increase from 2025. Overall payment effects will vary depending on the type of audiologic service—whether it is hearing versus vestibular, diagnostic versus rehabilitative—and the delivery setting. Non-facility sites (private or office-based practices) are projected to experience minimal change (0–1% decrease), while facility-based services may see a larger decline (~13%) due to reallocation of indirect practice expense (PE) costs away from hospitals and toward office settings. 

CMS also finalized a –2.5% efficiency adjustment for non-time-based services. Thanks to strong advocacy from the American Academy of Audiology (AAA), time-based audiology codes were excluded from this reduction, preserving reimbursement for labor-intensive evaluations. Among commonly billed diagnostic codes, those subject to the efficiency cut—such as 92557 (comprehensive audiometry), 92556 (speech recognition), 92567 (tympanometry), 92570 (acoustic immittance), and 92587–92588 (otoacoustic emissions)—will experience small payment decreases. Conversely, time-based codes such as 92620 (auditory processing evaluation), 92621 (each additional 15 minutes), and 92640 (auditory evoked potentials) remain stable or slightly positive. 

Two new procedure codes, 92622 and 92623, describing auditory osseointegrated sound processor fitting, have been added to the Medicare Telehealth List, supporting access to care through remote delivery. Despite these updates, hearing aid–related services remain excluded from Medicare coverage under §1862(a)(7).
A significant structural change for 2026 is the implementation of 12 new CPT codes for hearing device–related services, replacing six outdated codes (92590–92595) that have been in place since 1993. Developed jointly by the American Medical Association (AMA), AAA, and the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA), these codes reflect the complexity of modern audiologic care and contemporary hearing technologies. The new code family moves from the “Audiologic Function Tests” section to “Evaluative and Therapeutic Services,” aligning coding language with current practice and expanding flexibility for audiologists to select services according to patient needs.
The new codes capture key components of hearing care—candidacy evaluation, hearing aid or device selection, fitting and follow-up, and verification—and are time-based, recognizing total professional time spent on assessment, management, and treatment. Each code has a minimum time threshold, allowing for more precise documentation of the scope of care. Although the new codes are not assigned Relative Value Units (RVUs) or included in Medicare’s fee schedule, they empower audiologists to negotiate reimbursement directly with private payers, employers, or patients, promoting transparency and flexibility. 

Professional organizations are preparing for the transition through widespread education and support. Both AAA and ASHA will offer training materials, crosswalks, and webinars—including “Navigating the Shift: Understanding the New Hearing Device Service CPT Codes”—to guide clinicians in billing, documentation, and payer communication.
In summary, the CY 2026 MPFS advances audiology reimbursement in two key ways: (1) adjusting payment structures through PE reallocation and efficiency factors while protecting time-based procedures, and (2) modernizing hearing device service codes to reflect the current realities of audiologic practice. Although Medicare coverage remains limited, these updates signal an essential evolution toward accurately representing the professional expertise and comprehensive services provided by audiologists.