COVID-19 – Coronavirus

Since early March 2020, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has released a steady stream of guidance to Medicare Advantage Organizations (MAOs) and Part D sponsors in connection with the Coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak. CMS recently compiled much of this guidance in a memorandum published on April 21, 2020, which revised prior guidance released on March 10, 2020. […]

CMS issued a another round of sweeping regulatory rollbacks Thursday that will temporarily change how some providers care for patients and get compensated during the ongoing pandemic. Practitioners such as therapists previously restricted from providing telehealth services for reimbursement can now do so, and CMS is also upping payments for telephone-only telehealth visits. Accountable care organizations also scored […]

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has introduced a new crop of temporary regulatory flexibilities in response to the COVID-19 public health emergency (PHE) in the form of new blanket waivers, implementing guidance related to provisions of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Support Act (CARES Act) regarding rural health clinics (RHCs) and federally […]

Summary: Healthcare providers have a unique opportunity to integrate telemedicine into their practice. As part of this effort, we’ve launched telehealth.hhs.gov. As healthcare providers, we swear an oath at medical school graduation that guides us through our careers.  Whether on the job or walking down the street, we carry this promise, to our patients, communities, and […]

Just days after the application period opened, some $3.23 million has already been approved to help hard-hit health systems deploy telemedicine technology, connected devices and remote patient-monitoring tools. The Federal Communications Commission on Thursday announced the first half-dozen awardees of its COVID-19 Telehealth Program. WHY IT MATTERSHealth systems in hard-hit states such as Louisiana, New […]

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) recently provided Section 1135 waivers and guidance granting flexibilities to home health agencies (HHAs) and hospices during the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic national emergency. Of note are an expanded ability for HHAs and hospices to provide some telehealth services to Medicare beneficiaries as well as the easing of […]

Summary: Healthcare providers have a unique opportunity to integrate telemedicine into their practice. As part of this effort, we’ve launched telehealth.hhs.gov. As healthcare providers, we swear an oath at medical school graduation that guides us through our careers.  Whether on the job or walking down the street, we carry this promise, to our patients, communities, and […]

A range of wireless tools help providers track data, curb readmissions and improve outcomes after a patient’s discharge. Despite the best efforts of clinicians, some hospital readmissions are necessary and unavoidable. A cardiac patient may develop fluid around his or her heart, or infection could set in at a surgical site. Other discharged patients may […]

On April 23, 2020, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) released the “State Medicaid & CHIP Telehealth Toolkit: Policy Considerations for States Expanding Use of Telehealth” (the Toolkit). Telehealth allows patients to receive necessary health care services without risking the spread of COVID-19 through in-person interactions. The Toolkit is one of several guidance […]

Healthcare systems are undergoing rapid changes in light of the current pandemic, and Medisanté are finding solutions to patient care through telehealth and remote patient monitoring. Medisanté, headquartered in Switzerland, offers solutions to the radical transformation that healthcare systems and workers are facing now and over the next ten years, empowering connected care by expanding […]

Disbursements of $200 million fund could start by end of April. TAKEAWAYS Fund reimburses expenses for telecommunications service and equipment to provide COVID-19 related connected care services. FCC’s main goal is to rapidly disburse funds to hardest hit areas. Funding should be available by end of April. The Federal Communications Commission is moving quickly to […]

Home health and hospice providers now have greater clarity on how much initial emergency assistance they’ll be getting from the CARES Act Provider Relief Fund, as well as when those direct deposits will hit their bank accounts. While details of the disbursements were originally scarce, it seems the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) started doling […]

The COVID-19 pandemic has quickly caused at least a temporary restructuring of the U.S. healthcare system. This restructuring has impacted not only service delivery and healthcare funding but also the privacy of patients’ information. In the course of several weeks, the Office of Civil Rights (OCR) of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) […]