Which Medicare waivers will be made permanent by CMS after the COVID-19 public health emergency is still up in the air, but the recently proposed 2021 Physician Fee Schedule rule indicates that telehealth coverage and workforce flexibilities could be here to stay. The rule released yesterday also proposed to lower the 2021 Physician Fee Schedule […]
President Donald Trump on Monday ordered a potentially long-term extension of reimbursements for telehealth services that have exploded in popularity during the coronavirus pandemic and once again claimed to be putting the finishing touches on a “tremendous health care plan.” President Donald Trump speaks during a news conference Monday at the White House after announcing […]
Various reports indicate that physician adoption of telemedicine has boomed over the course of just the past few months, with virtual healthcare interactions set to surpass 1 billion by the end of the year. Similarly, in 2019 just 8% of patients surveyed had sought care via telemedicine, but as of April 2020, that number had […]
For the past few months, policymakers from the states to Congress have discussed plans to keep some of the loosened telehealth regulations after the pandemic. On Monday, President Donald Trump signed an executive ordersteering agencies to do that work and improve access to healthcare in rural communities. The order directs Health and Human Services Secretary Alex […]
Among a swath of proposed policy and payment changes announced this week by the Trump administration, CMS continued its effort to simplify coding requirements, quality measurements, and focus on 340B drug costs. In addition, it wants Medicare beneficiaries to be eligible to have more surgeries performed in hospital outpatient surgery centers, and it expanded the […]
On August, 3 2020, the Centers for Medicare & 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 (PFS), and other Medicare Part B issues, on or after Jan. 1. The CY 2021 PFS proposed rule is one of […]
Dive Brief: President Donald Trump late Monday signed an executive order directing the administration to permanently extend Medicare’s broader telehealth coverage after the public health emergency, and CMS followed by proposing a rule that does so — albeit on a piecemeal, service-by-service basis. The proposed changes, in its 2021 physician fee schedule released Monday night, would allow Medicare providers […]
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has proposed a new rule that would make certain COVID-19-related telehealth flexibilities introduced over the past few months permanent for Medicare beneficiaries. The move comes in conjunction with an executive order from President Trump to improve rural and telehealth access. While CMS’s proposed rule potentially paves the way for more remote nursing […]
On August 3, 2020, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) issued the advance copy of its proposed 2021 Physician Fee Schedule rule, which contains new telehealth services covered under Medicare. Compared to last year, where CMS made only minor additions to telehealth services, the changes proposed for 2021 are bold and designed to more deliberately expand […]
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic since mid-March, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) worked quickly to issue emergency guidance that allowed temporary expansion of payment for telehealth services and provided certain flexibility in providing telehealth services. The COVID pandemic has significantly increased awareness of the benefits of telehealth, as many patients have […]
It’s hard to find a silver lining in a pandemic. But one of the few may be the rapid rise of telemedicine. With people stuck at home, doctors retooled their practices to see patients via videoconference. Insurance companies and regulators expanded the number of services available via telemedicine—and made reimbursement for telehealth consultations on par […]
To build upon temporary legislative efforts to address telehealth coverage for COVID-19, multiple states have recently passed or proposed permanent legislation to require broader telehealth reimbursement by both private and public payers to extend beyond the public health emergency. State actions have varied widely in scope and duration, but a major focus of legislation has […]
Before the pandemic, telehealth coverage was limited in scope. However, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) recently expanded coverage through its regulatory authority and waivers to encourage broad adoption of telehealth for the duration of the public health emergency. Accordingly, over the last few months, we have seen an exponential increase in telehealth. […]
CMS is proposing changes to the Medicare End-Stage Renal Disease (ESRD) Prospective Payment System (PPS) that would encourage the use of telehealth and mHealth platforms and tools to expand dialysis treatment to the home. By Eric Wicklund July 21, 2020 – Federal officials are throwing support behind telehealth and mHealth platform that would help providers extend dialysis treatment […]
In response to the pandemic, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has issued waivers permitting reimbursement for telehealth visits, the waiver of certain copayments and relaxed technology requirements. As Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee Chairman Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., recently stated, the health care sector and government “have been forced to cram 10 years’ worth […]