Federal Agencies

14 Sep 2020

Blog, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) - Medicare, Telehealth, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) 0 comments

CMS Advancing Seniors Access to Cutting-edge Therapies and Technology in Medicare Hospital Rule

Finalized policy changes expand new technology add-on payment pathway for certain antimicrobials On September 2, CMS issued the FY 2021 Medicare Hospital Inpatient Prospective Payment System and Long Term Acute Care Hospital (LTCH) final rule, which includes important provisions designed to ensure access to potentially life-saving diagnostics and therapies for hospitalized Medicare beneficiaries. The changes […]

14 Sep 2020

Blog, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) - Medicare, COVID-19 - Coronavirus, Physician Fee Schedule, Reimbursement, Telehealth, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) 0 comments

CMS Proposes Telehealth Updates to the 2021 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule

On August 3, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released its proposed Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS) updates for the 2021 calendar year, addressing among other policy changes how CMS will treat telehealth codes for the duration of and following the COVID-19 public health emergency (PHE). Background: CMS’ Process for Reviewing New Telehealth Codes CMS […]

14 Sep 2020

Blog, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) - Medicare, COVID-19 - Coronavirus, Reimbursement, Rural Health Clinics (RHCs), Telehealth, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) 0 comments

Central Maine Healthcare CMIO: ‘Telehealth Reimbursement Can’t Go Back to Pre-COVID Status’

Steven Martel, M.D., CMIO at Central Maine Healthcare, describes his organization’s journey into telehealth during the pandemic, and what needs to happen for usage rates to remain high going forward. It’s been very well-documented that COVID-19 has forced patient care organizations to turn to alternative ways to provide care while limiting exposure to the virus. In this […]

14 Sep 2020

Blog, COVID-19 - Coronavirus, Federal Communications Commission (FCC), Telehealth, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) 0 comments

Federal Government Announces Rural Telehealth Initiative

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Federal Communications Commission (FCC), U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) today announced that they have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to work together on the Rural Telehealth Initiative, a joint effort to collaborate and share information to address health disparities, resolve service provider challenges, and promote […]

14 Sep 2020

Blog, Federal Communications Commission (FCC), Telehealth, Telemedicine 0 comments

FCC Releases Guidance for $100M Connected Care Pilot Program

What You Should Know: – FCC releases Public Notice providing additional information and guidance for potential applicants interested in applying for its Connected Care Pilot Program. – The Connected Care Pilot Program will provide up to $100 million from the Universal Service Fund (USF) over a three-year period to selected applicants to support the provision […]

Rural Hospitals As Federal Medical Aid To States Falls Short

14 Sep 2020

American Hospital Association (AHA), Blog, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) - Medicare, COVID-19 - Coronavirus, Rural Health Clinics (RHCs), Telehealth, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) 0 comments

HHS Plan to Improve Rural Health Focuses on Better Broadband, Telehealth Services

Knowing it may be met with some skepticism, the Trump administration Thursday announced a sweeping plan that officials say will transform health care in rural America. Even before the coronavirus pandemic reached into the nation’s less-populated regions, rural Americans were sicker, poorer and older than the rest of the country. Hospitals are shuttering at record […]

14 Sep 2020

Blog, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) - Medicare, COVID-19 - Coronavirus, Federal Communications Commission (FCC), Telehealth, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) 0 comments

How to make telehealth more permanent after COVID-19

The coronavirus outbreak, or COVID-19, has fundamentally transformed our lives and communities, contributing to economic declines, disruptions in schooling, and distressed hospital systems. However, the pandemic has generated some silver linings, including the widespread adoption of telehealth that has helped to mitigate the risk of community spread by reducing unnecessary hospital visits and ensuring real-time […]

HHS releases plan to strengthen rural healthcare

14 Sep 2020

Blog, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) - Medicare, Medicare Advantage (MA), Telehealth, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) 0 comments

HHS releases plan to strengthen rural healthcare

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has released the rural action plan, the first department-wide assessment of rural healthcare efforts in 18 years. According to a news release, the plan will serve as a roadmap for the department to strengthen coordination among departments in order to better serve rural communities across the country. […]

14 Sep 2020

Blog, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) - Medicare, Telemedicine 0 comments

Will telemedicine save US health care?

BY DR. MEETA SHAH, OPINION CONTRIBUTOR — 09/08/20 09:30 AM EDT A category of unsung heroes in this pandemic are those that have been behind a video screen. For some patients, telemedicine providers have offered the only safe and convenient access to acute and preventative health care needs for months now. I believe that the conversion to […]

14 Sep 2020

Blog, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) - Medicare, Remote Patient Monitoring, Telehealth, Telemedicine, Virtual Exam and Virtual Care 0 comments

Telehealth’s post-pandemic future: Where do we go from here?

SEP 7, 2020 Len Strazewski Concerned about exposing patients and their families to COVID-19, doctors and other health professionals are expanding telehealth services, using a variety of audio and video technology to make connections. Meg Barron, the AMA’s vice president of digital innovation, reported that even prior to the pandemic’s onset, telehealth visits and remote […]

HHS Underscores Importance of Tech in First-Ever Rural Health Plan

14 Sep 2020

Blog, Rural Health Clinics (RHCs), Telehealth, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) 0 comments

HHS Underscores Importance of Tech in First-Ever Rural Health Plan

In August, President Donald Trump signed an executive order that asked for a report on ongoing and future actions to enhance rural health care. HHS released an 82-page response to the order last week. Technology will play a substantial role in a new effort from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to […]

3 ways to bring telehealth to the next level

14 Sep 2020

Blog, Telehealth, Telemedicine, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) 0 comments

3 ways to bring telehealth to the next level

Here are three things that can be done to further amplify the evolution and availability of telehealth to support patients, especially seniors. By CLINT JONES / Sep 11, 2020 at 6:11 PM If there is any type of silver lining for the Covid-19 pandemic – it’s telehealth. According to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), in February […]

11 Sep 2020

Blog, Federal Communications Commission (FCC), Rural Health Clinics (RHCs), Telehealth, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) 0 comments

HHS focuses on telehealth and tech innovations in Rural Action Plan

The roadmap released this week includes a four-point strategy to address the challenges facing rural healthcare. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services on Thursday released an 82-page Rural Action Plan aimed at evaluating and engaging challenges facing rural healthcare in the country. The plan lays out a four-point strategy intended to address hurdles to providing […]

AMA Study Offer First National Estimate of Telemedicine Use by Physicians

11 Sep 2020

American Medical Association (AMA), Blog, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) - Medicare, COVID-19 - Coronavirus, Remote Patient Monitoring, Telehealth 0 comments

Telehealth’s post-pandemic future: Where do we go from here?

SEP 7, 2020 Len Strazewski Contributing News Writer Concerned about exposing patients and their families to COVID-19, doctors and other health professionals are expanding telehealth services, using a variety of audio and video technology to make connections. Master key telehealth principles Meg Barron, the AMA’s vice president of digital innovation, reported that even prior to […]

11 Sep 2020

Blog, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) - Medicare, COVID-19 - Coronavirus, Home Health Agencies (HHAs), U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) 0 comments

PDGM & COVID-19 Can Bring New Opportunities

It’s now been about nine months since the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) required a new payment model for home health care, representing the largest change to the payment model in decades. The new Patient Driven Groupings Model (PDGM) affects tens of thousands of agencies that provide therapy for millions of home health […]

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