Physician adoption of digital health tools continues to grow, as does the infrastructure facilitating appropriate payment for their use. The Current Procedural Terminology (CPT®) code set, often called “the language of medicine,” is expanding to meet the demand. “The CPT code set does move at the pace of medicine, and it continues to evolve and keep pace with […]
In communities that otherwise would lack access to care, essential hospitals reach outside their walls to meet patients’ needs. Telehealth services have proved to be an important tool in the provider arsenal to increase access to care for underserved populations. The COVID-19 pandemic has underscored the need for flexibility to provide patient-centered care that best […]
Time is running out for Congress to take action on pending legislation dealing with issues that would help primary care across the United States. Six physician groups representing 590,000 doctors across the country sent a joint letter again urging congressional leaders to vote – soon – for bills relating to Medicare reimbursements, prior authorizations, children’s health insurance coverage, mental […]
On November 1, 2022, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued the 2023 Physician Fee Schedule (PFS) Final Rule. CMS publishes a PFS annually so as to make changes in federal healthcare reimbursement and policy. PFS changes often spill over into the private sector, as private payors typically consult the PFS when evaluating […]
Though healthcare leaders see telehealth as critical to boosting patient access, they believe that reimbursement and patient technology issues are hindering more widespread telehealth use, according to a new report. Released by the Center for Connected Medicine (CCM) at UPMC, the report is based on two surveys. The first polled healthcare executives on problems that have […]
To address challenges during the Covid-19 pandemic, state and federal governments provided temporary waivers and flexibilities to make telehealth more available for consumers. Now, Americans want the government to make these provisions permanent, a new survey shows. The survey was published Thursday by advocacy group America’s Health Insurance Plans (AHIP). It was fielded in October by NORC […]
On November 1, 2022, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) released its final 2023 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (PFS) rule. As finalized, some of the most significant telehealth policy changes include: According to the September 2021 Medicare Telemedicine Snapshot, telehealth services have increased more than 30-fold since the start of the PHE and have been utilized […]
Regions with limited healthcare resources may not benefit from telehealth expansion, prompting the need for efforts to improve access, a new JAMA Network Open study finds. Throughout the recent expansion of telehealth, researchers continuously gained insight into new methods for reaching areas with limited amounts of healthcare resources, highlighting many areas and populations facing limited healthcare resources. The […]
Q: Are there any changes to the telehealth billing in 2023? A: For CY 2023, Medicare is finalizing a number of policies related to services, including making several services that are temporarily available as telehealth services for the Public Health Emergency (PHE) available at least through CY 2023. This allows additional time for the collection of […]
November is Diabetes Awareness Month. More than 37 million U.S. adults live with this chronic condition, which can cause a variety of complications, such as stroke, kidney disease, heart disease and blindness. To help address this epidemic, Dr. Sos Mboijana argued in a recent interview that providers should incorporate remote patient monitoring (RPM) into the standard of care for diabetes. […]
Hospitals that don’t make money often end up shut down. While care quality is important, clinics and hospitals that aren’t profitable have no future. To ensure that isn’t the case, chronic care management solutions like virtual care and remote patient monitoring services are necessary to keep facilities in the green. Here’s how they help improve ROI for […]
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) published the calendar year (CY) 2023 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS) in the Federal Register for November 18, 2022. Some of the key provisions contained in the final rule include (and are effective on January 1, 2023): Medicare Telehealth Services Evaluation & Management (E&M) Visits Behavioral Health Chronic Pain […]
Telehealth has quickly become one of our nation’s most essential health care services — a safe and low-cost way to access care. Millions of users have now experienced and embraced what telehealth has to offer. Many won’t go back to traditional ways of getting care, including your employees. To meet the evolving preferences of your […]
A recently published scientific statement from the American Heart Association (AHA) states that although there are existing challenges related to technology access, telehealth can effectively provide cardiovascular care as well as reduce costs, improve care quality, and increase access to care. AHA is a voluntary organization focused on improving heart disease and stroke care. In its scientific statement, […]