{"id":28364,"date":"2020-07-27T18:00:12","date_gmt":"2020-07-27T18:00:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dev.mtelehealth.com\/?p=28364"},"modified":"2020-07-27T18:00:12","modified_gmt":"2020-07-27T18:00:12","slug":"telehealth-post-covid-19","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/drmiltie.com\/at-home-testing\/telehealth-post-covid-19\/","title":{"rendered":"Telehealth Post COVID-19"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

COVID-19 has dramatically changed the way healthcare is delivered. Providers were forced to pivot quickly from total reliance on \u201cin-person\u201d visits to total reliance on alternative delivery methods. Between early March 2020 and early April 2020, the number of visits to ambulatory practices declined by nearly 60%. [1] <\/p>\n\n\n\n

While ambulatory visits are starting to rebound, the overall impact appears to indicate that there is still a significant decline in in-person visits to healthcare providers. Over the same period, telehealth visits have increased. While the use is declining somewhat, most experts believe that COVID-19 has fundamentally changed the delivery model to include an increased reliance on telehealth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A recent McKinsey & Company report predicted that up to $250 Billion of the current healthcare spend could transition to telehealth. [2] The study also indicated that consumers were significantly more likely to use telehealth going forward, and providers view telehealth more favorably than they did before COVID-19. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Healthcare Financial Management Association recently published an article in which a physician stated that by using telehealth, he believes he\/she could reduce his\/her in-office days to two per week. [3] It\u2019s easy to see how providers will want to utilize telehealth going forward to reduce expenses. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

All of this information suggests telehealth is here to stay. At the start of the COVID-19 response, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) Office of Civil Rights (OCR) issued a waiver of potential penalties for HIPAA violations related to telehealth use, which enabled providers to implement it quickly without fear of HIPAA enforcement. [4] However, at some point, OCR will rescind this waiver and expect providers to ensure their telehealth is HIPAA complaint. In addition, the waiver may not fully protect a provider from other legal actions should a breach of Protected Health Information (PHI) occur while using telehealth. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Securing Your Telehealth Environment <\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

While consumers are showing an increased interest in using telehealth, there are still concerns about the security of PHI in the telehealth environment. A recent survey indicated over 25% of consumers surveyed were worried about the privacy of their PHI. [5] This concern is only heightened by media reports of the risk of video call hijacking or \u2018zoombombing\u2019. In order to increase consumer acceptance and ensure continued compliance with HIPAA requirements, organizations that have implemented telehealth in response to the COVID-19 pandemic need to take steps to secure their telehealth environment. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Step 1 \u2013 Evaluate Your Providers <\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

As organizations raced to respond to COVID-19, many did not have a chosen telehealth provider. As a result, physicians and other practitioners often signed up with services independently. Recently one provider with an extensive provider network was quoted as indicating her organization had providers using FaceTime, Zoom, Cerner, and other telecommunication platforms. [6] <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Before you can secure your environment, you need to understand what your providers are using. You will then need to make some decisions. Do you continue to allow providers to \u201cpick their solution\u201d, or do you go with a standardized product throughout the organization? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The pros of \u201cpick their solution\u201d are that your providers are comfortable with their choices. The cons of \u201cpick their solution\u201d are that it is significantly more risky to have multiple solutions. Additionally, your patients may find it confusing to use FaceTime for appointments with the cardiologist, Zoom for appointments with the internist, and Microsoft Teams for appointments with yet another provider. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Once you have inventoried your providers, you need to do a vendor evaluation. This should be done regardless of if you have one vendor or five. The vendor evaluation can also help you reduce the number of products being used. While a significant portion of the evaluation should focus on the ease of use, tool performance, and other factors, you also need to consider security. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Performing vendor due diligence<\/a> is not only a HIPAA requirement but will help you reduce the risk of a data breach. Remember that even if the telehealth vendor has the breach, your organization will be subject to both potential reputational damage and a review by the OCR to verify you had appropriate controls in place. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

At a minimum, your vendor assessment should include the following: <\/p>\n\n\n\n