At the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) quickly moved to waive a number of regulatory requirements. These waivers provided hospitals and health systems with critical flexibilities to manage what has been a prolonged and unpredictable pandemic. Hospitals and health systems used these newly permitted tools to increase […]
The bipartisan legislation would eliminate Medicare’s geographic and originating site restrictions and establish policies that ensure Medicare coverage for telehealth services. January 28, 2022 – U.S. Sens. Susan Collins (R-ME) and Angus King (I-ME) are co-sponsoring the Telehealth Modernization Act, which aims to solidify access to and coverage of telehealth services for Medicare beneficiaries. At the start of the […]
Numerous telehealth bills are winding their way through Congress, and while they appear to have solid, bipartisan support, there are some key factors that could hold back their passage. January 17, 2022 – Though telehealth usage has both dipped and grown at various points over the last year, it is expected to remain a key part of care delivery […]
The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2022 (the Act), was passed by the U.S. House and Senate on March 9th and 10th, 2022, and signed into law by the President on March 15, 2022. The Act extends certain telehealth flexibilities for Medicare patients for 151 days after the official end of the federal public health emergency (PHE). Currently, the PHE […]
As the explosion of telemedicine continues during and, as many expect, after the COVID-19 public health emergency (PHE), state laws and regulations that affect the delivery of telemedicine services continue to expand and contract. In this three-part series, we explore key state regulatory considerations related to the provision of care through telehealth, including state licensure […]
A bill introduced in the Senate aims to extend CMS‘ Acute Hospital Care at Home waiver for two years after the COVID-19 public health emergency reaches an end. By Mark Melchionna March 11, 2022 – Sens. Tom Carper (D-Delaware) and Tim Scott (R-South Carolina) introduced a bill called the Hospital Inpatient Services Act that allows for a two-year extension of […]
The 2022 Congressional budget bill includes flexibilities for doctors to provide telehealth services to patients, according to the leader of the American College of Physicians (ACP). But the American Hospital Association (AHA) criticized lawmakers for removing additional COVID-19 relief from the omnibus spending bill approved by the House of Representatives and now in the Senate with a vote expected in coming […]
COVID-19 Telehealth Program DA 22-260Released: March 11, 2022 WIRELINE COMPETITION BUREAU ANNOUNCES A PURCHASE AND IMPLEMENTATION DEADLINE OF JULY 31, 2022 FOR ROUND 2 OF THECOVID-19 TELEHEALTH PROGRAM WC Docket No. 20-89 By this Public Notice, the Wireline Competition Bureau (Bureau) sets July 31, 2022, as the deadline for Round 2 COVID-19 Telehealth Program (COVID-19 […]
If enacted into law, the omnibus spending package will extend numerous telehealth waivers for Medicare beneficiaries at least five months after the public health crisis has ended. By Anuja Vaidya March 10, 2022 – The new omnibus spending bill, introduced in the House of Representatives Wednesday, includes several provisions to extend telehealth flexibilities for Medicare patients. The $1.5 trillion […]
As mindsets pivoted to a post-pandemic life, telehealth advocates petitioned CMS to embrace telehealth as a permanent care option, and CMS responded with regulatory action at the end of 2021. During the Covid-19 Pandemic, telehealth usage surged as patients and providers turned to it as a safer care alternative. McKinsey estimated telehealth claim volumes reached […]