On August 3, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a proposed rule that announces and solicits public comments on proposed policy changes for Medicare payments under the Physician Fee Schedule and other Medicare Part B services provided on or after January 1, 2021. Many of the CMS proposals involve expansion of telehealth services which […]
Sep 10, 2020 Knowing it may be met with some skepticism, the Trump administration Thursday announced a sweeping plan that officials say will transform health care in rural America. Even before the coronavirus pandemic reached into the nation’s less-populated regions, rural Americans were sicker, poorer and older than the rest of the country. Hospitals are […]
On August 4, 2020, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) released a proposed rule to update its payment policies under the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (PFS) for calendar year 2021. The proposed rule was issued in tandem with a presidential executive order, which directed the Secretary of the US Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) […]
The public health emergency (PHE) caused by the COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in systemic changes throughout the nation’s health care system. Almost overnight, health systems, providers and the government were forced to collaborate to ‘stand up’ field hospitals, testing sites, and quarantine procedures, while postponing or cancelling certain elective procedures and ceasing in-person encounters. One […]
Over the past five months, Congress and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) have dramatically, but temporarily, expanded coverage and reimbursement for telehealth services in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The changes are in effect for the duration of the Health and Human Services (HHS) Public Health Emergency (PHE). As there are significant […]
On August 3, 2020, President Trump signed Executive Order 13941 (the “Executive Order”) which expands access to certain telehealth services post-pandemic. The Executive Order focuses on telehealth access for individuals living in rural areas and implements the following mechanisms: The Secretary of HHS is tasked with developing a new model that will give rural providers flexibilities from […]
On August 3, 2020, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) proposed to permanently maintain some of the COVID-19 temporary expansions to the Medicare Telehealth List and will consider comments on other telehealth expansions. CMS already covered a limited number of medical and mental health services through telehealth. The secretary of Health and Human Services may […]
— Any meaningful reform will require action from congress While the Trump administration has asserted that an executive order and a proposed rule issued this week will expand access to telemedicine for all Americans, outside experts say such promises won’t be realized anytime soon. The executive branch lacks the needed authority on its own, they told MedPage Today, and the […]
President Trump issued an Executive Order (the “Order”) on August 3, 2020, to improve rural health and telehealth access. The Order tasks several federal agencies with developing new programs and plans to address longstanding federal barriers to fuller telehealth access in rural areas, including payments, infrastructure, and policy. According to the Order, the Centers for Medicare and […]
The executive order calls upon HHS to cement expanded Medicare telehealth coverage and improve rural health care infrastructure. A new executive order from the White House is pushing to expand telehealth coverage and infrastructure, as well as make health care in rural communities more accessible beyond the COVID-19 pandemic. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid […]
US President Donald Trump issued an executive order on August 3 that aims to expand telehealth access to Medicare beneficiaries beyond the coronavirus (COVID-19) public health emergency (PHE) period. The executive order focuses on rural healthcare providers in particular, noting the difficulties patients in rural areas face in obtaining accessible, high-quality healthcare services over the years. The […]
President Donald Trump signed a new executive order Aug. 3 to expand access to telehealth services during the COVID-19 pandemic, notably in rural areas. The Trump administration also is extending some telehealth services even after the pandemic public health emergency ends. The order requires the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) to roll out new […]
Alongside President Trump’s call for more rural telehealth coverage, CMS’ proposed 2021 Physician Fee Schedule could keep the momentum going for connected health. But is it enough? The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has come out with its long-anticipated plans to expand telehealth coverage beyond the coronavirus pandemic. An advance copy of the proposed 2021 […]
The White House Aug. 3 issued an executive order on “improving rural health and telehealth access.” The order includes directives to: launch a new payment model for rural health care; develop and implement a strategy to improve rural health care infrastructure; create a report describing policy initiatives to improve rural health; and propose regulation that would extend […]
Doctors treating patients virtually can provide new services, such as emergency visits, eye exams, and certain mental health visits, after the pandemic subsides under an executive order from President Donald Trump announced yesterday. As part of the order, the Agriculture Department and Federal Communications Commission are partnering to bolster broadband access to rural communities, boosting telehealth efforts […]