CMS released the 2021 home health final rule on Thursday, October 29, 2020. There were minimal changes compared to the home health proposed rule that was released in July 2020. Probably the best news in the rule was the 1.9% aggregate increase (or $390 million) in reimbursement that agencies will realize in 2021. Although the […]
As the COVID-19 pandemic continues across the United States, states, payers, and providers are looking for ways to expand access to telehealth services. Telehealth is an essential tool in ensuring patients are able to access the healthcare services they need in as safe a manner as possible. In order to provide our clients with quick and […]
As the COVID-19 pandemic continues across the United States, states, payers, and providers are looking for ways to expand access to telehealth services. Telehealth is an essential tool in ensuring patients are able to access the healthcare services they need in as safe a manner as possible. In order to provide our clients with quick and […]
Whole person care is considered critical to payer strategies, but how can payers ensure it remains central to evolving population health and telehealth strategies? By Kelsey Waddill November 02, 2020 – As the healthcare environment faces major changes, payers may face challenges in maintaining their focus on whole person care across all strategies. Given the influence of the […]
The public health emergency (PHE) for COVID-19 has brought about many changes to the way healthcare is practiced, delivered, and reimbursed. This article will discuss some of the major recent changes to telehealth on the federal level. Disclaimer: For consistency, the term “telehealth” is used throughout this article and is intended to include telemedicine, telepsychiatry, […]
Healthcare lawyer Andrew Selesnick said one key will be to establish a stable, user-friendly platform that can make documentation seamless. By Kat Jercich October 27, 2020 10:58 AM The future potential of telehealth hinges on how it’s reimbursed. Virtual care may be popular among patients, but if providers can’t get paid for their services, it’s […]
Is this “new normal” a false reality? As we are now well into October, many months into COVID-19, I think we all have to look at what all the associated changes are going to mean for healthcare. I have been seeing so many telehealth advocates saying “the genie is out of the bottle” and related […]
Telehealth growth has sped up during the pandemic, but whether it continues long-term is a point of debate among hospital and health system CIOs. The fate of telehealth rests on several factors, including CMS and commercial payers permanently extending payment benefits for telehealth and virtual care services. “CMS keeps kicking the can down the road, […]
Home health providers are one step closer to getting the No. 1 thing they’ve been asking for since the COVID-19 pandemic began: reimbursement for telehealth-driven visits. On Friday, U.S. Senators Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Ben Cardin (D-Md.) introduced the Home Health Emergency Access to Telehealth (HEAT) Act, a bipartisan bill to provide Medicare reimbursement for […]
On October 14, 2020, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) expanded the list of telehealth services that Medicare Fee-For-Service will pay for during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) public health emergency. According to CMS, the agency is also providing additional support to state Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) agencies in their efforts to […]
Only 20% of US health systems said they’d continue offering telehealth if reimbursement rates reverted to pre-pandemic levels. This could make patients flock to direct-to-consumer virtual care providers like 98point6. A mere 20% of US health systems said they’d continue offering telehealth if reimbursement rates reverted to pre-pandemic levels, while another 30% are unsure whether […]
Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senators Susan Collins (R-ME) and Ben Cardin (D-MD) introduced the Home Health Emergency Access to Telehealth (HEAT) Act, a bipartisan bill to provide Medicare reimbursement for audio and video telehealth services furnished by home health agencies during the COVID-19 emergency and future public health emergencies. U.S. Representatives Roger Marshall (R-KS), Terri Sewell (D-AL), Jodey […]
Today, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a final rule [CMS-1730-F] that finalizes routine updates to the home health payment rates for calendar year (CY) 2021, in accordance with existing statutory and regulatory requirements. This rule also finalizes the regulatory changes related to the use of telecommunications technology in providing care under […]
CMS on Thursday made permanent changes to telehealth flexibilities for home health providers. In its home health payment rule for 2021, the agency signed off on changes to allow providers to use telehealth for related skilled services if they’re outlined in a patient’s care plan. It also requires provides to describe how telehealth would improve treatment in a patient’s […]
Providers have looked to telehealth to continue seeing patients and revenue cycle technologies to improve efficiencies. Jeff Lagasse, Associate Editor When the COVID-19 pandemic hit earlier this year, it presented health systems across the U.S. with a need to accelerate innovation during an unprecedented time that shut down many in-person medical services. Health systems quickly turned […]