Page 12 50 State Telemedicine Gaps Analysis Coverage and Reimbursement

50 State Telemedicine Gaps Analysis: Coverage & Reimbursement

Figure 2

States with the highest grades for private insurance telemedicine parity provide state-wide
coverage, and have no provider or technology restrictions (Figure 2). Among states with parity
laws, Arizona, Michigan, Oregon, Vermont, and Washington scored about average (C).
Michigan, Oregon, and Vermont only authorize the use of interactive audio-video systems.
While Arizona also restricts coverage to audio-video only, the state’s law also restricts the types
of services and conditions that are covered via telemedicine. Despite enacting a parity law in
March 2015, Arkansas maintains a failing grade because it places arbitrary limits on patient
location, eligible provider type, and requires an in-person visit to establish a provider-patient
relationship. Fifty-four percent of the country ranked the lowest with failing (F) scores.

B. Medicaid

Additionally, each state’s Medicaid plan was assessed based on service limits and patient setting
restrictions. Other components assessed for all three plans include provider eligibility and the
type of technology allowed under the parity law are examined to determine the state’s capacity to
fully utilize telemedicine to overcome barriers to care. For this report’s purpose, we measured
components of state policies that enable or impede parity for telemedicine-provided services
under Medicaid state-employee health plans.

Scale – Medicaid Coverage
A 14+ points
B 10-13 points
C 6-9 points
F ≤ 5 points

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American Telemedicine Association
2015