{"id":31703,"date":"2020-12-18T16:24:32","date_gmt":"2020-12-18T16:24:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dev.mtelehealth.com\/?p=31703"},"modified":"2020-12-18T16:24:32","modified_gmt":"2020-12-18T16:24:32","slug":"congress-should-include-telehealth-in-year-end-funding-say-ata-himss","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/drmiltie.com\/at-home-testing\/congress-should-include-telehealth-in-year-end-funding-say-ata-himss\/","title":{"rendered":"Congress should include telehealth in year-end funding, say ATA, HIMSS"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\n
\n

In lieu of permanent policy change, industry groups urged legislators to extend temporary telehealth flexibilities through the end of 2021.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

By Kat Jercich<\/a> December 14, 2020 10:21 AM<\/a><\/a><\/a><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The American Telemedicine Association, the Connected Health Initiative and other industry groups issued a letter to Congress<\/a> on Friday urging legislators to extend temporary telehealth flexibilities until the end of 2021.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The groups, which also include Healthcare IT News<\/em>‘ parent company HIMSS, noted that the COVID-19 public health emergency has ushered in an unprecedented expansion to telehealth.   <\/p>\n\n\n\n

At the same time, however, providers and patients face continued uncertainty about the future of virtual care \u2013 made even more tenuous by legislators’ failure, thus far, to enact permanent changes to telemedicine policies.   <\/p>\n\n\n\n

“The continued risk of telehealth flexibilities ending with each subsequent 90-day renewal of the PHE adds additional uncertainty to an already strained health care delivery system. Patients and their health care professionals should not have to worry if they will be able to continue to receive or deliver necessary care,” read the letter.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

WHY IT MATTERS<\/strong>  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the letter, the ATA, the Connected Health Initiative and HIMSS \u2013 joined by the Alliance for Connected Care, the College of Healthcare Information Management Executives, the eHealth Initiative, the Heath Innovation Alliance and PCHAlliance \u2013 noted that COVID-19 had triggered relaxations of restrictions around telehealth.   <\/p>\n\n\n\n

That flexibility, in turn, shed light on how arbitrary some of those restrictions were.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In lieu of enacting permanent policies, the groups urged Congress in its end-of-year package to extend many of the temporary changes through next year.   <\/p>\n\n\n\n

These changes include:  <\/p>\n\n\n\n