Senator Lamar Alexander has added another telehealth bill to the rapidly growing list of efforts to expand connected health coverage in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic. The Tennessee Republican and chair of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions this week introduced the Telehealth Modernization Act (S. 4375), which aims to make permanent […]
Although it is a new disease, COVID-19 has a way of peeling back layers and bringing other medical issues to the surface. For example, research has shown that people with high blood pressure are more likely to become seriously ill. A study published in the April 22 issue of JAMA of 5,700 patients hospitalized with COVID-19 in […]
Provider reimbursement is now available to physicians who tell their patients to self-isolate at the time of COVID-19 testing, according to CMS. An announcement released late last week in collaboration with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said CMS will leverage existing evaluation and management (E/M) payment codes to reimburse eligible providers for the coronavirus […]
EXPANDING TELEHEALTH SERVICES: President Donald J. Trump is unleashing America’s innovation to provide millions of citizens with healthcare services during a global pandemic. Today, President Trump is signing a new Executive Order to further expand access to telehealth services during the COVID-19 pandemic, especially in rural communities. Through this order, the President is also taking […]
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration is taking steps to give telehealth a broader role under Medicare, with an executive order that serves as a call for Congress to make doctor visits via personal technology a permanent fixture of the program. The order President Donald Trump signed on Monday applies to one segment of Medicare […]
On August, 3 2020, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a proposed rule that announces and solicits public comments on proposed policy changes for Medicare payments under the Physician Fee Schedule (PFS), and other Medicare Part B issues, on or after January 1, 2021. The calendar year (CY) 2021 PFS proposed rule is one […]
On August 3, 2020, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued the Calendar Year (CY) 2021 Physician Fee Schedule (PFS) proposed rule, which proposes to revise certain MDPP policies during the remainder of the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency (PHE) and any future applicable 1135 waiver event. We are proposing that we would determine […]
The U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) will be making permanent a number of the temporary flexibilities to expand telehealth that the agency implemented in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The number of rules affecting hospices that would be extended remains to be seen. President Donald Trump signed an executive order that among […]
Doctors treating patients virtually can provide new services like eye exams and certain mental health visits after the pandemic subsides under an executive order announced Monday. As part of the order, the Agriculture Department and Federal Communications Commission are partnering to boost broadband access to rural communities, bolstering telehealth efforts beyond the pandemic. The telehealth order […]
On Monday, August 3, President Trump signed executive orders with the goal of improving healthcare in rural America, for seniors, and for all Americans, by expanding telehealth, modernizing regulations, and reforming payments. Specifically, the executive orders call on HHS to: Propose a Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) rule to extend parts of Medicare’s […]
The federal government on Monday introduced a proposed rule that would, if finalized, make permanent at least some of the emergency telehealth flexibilities implemented during the ongoing COVID-19 crisis, while potentially allowing a greater frequency of remote nursing home interventions. President Trump on Monday signed an executive order requiring the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) […]
CY 2021 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule Proposed Rule On August 3, 2020, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) published the Calendar Year (CY) 2021 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule Proposed Rule (PFS Proposed Rule). The agency’s proposals relating to telehealth and remote services are particularly noteworthy given the central role telehealth has taken in response to the […]
While home-based medical care has been shown to reduce hospitalization rates and lower costs for both homebound and non-homebound populations alike, it continues to be drastically underutilized in the current health care ecosystem. As a result, there are millions of older Americans — especially those living in rural areas — who are going without the […]
Hospitals & Healthcare investigates remote patient monitoring (RPM) technologies, how these are influencing the development of healthcare so that it is increasingly centred around the patient experience, and how payers and providers can benefit from this. Acording to Dr Sneh Khemka, Vice-President of Population Health, Aetna International, ‘around 60 per cent of primary healthcare is […]
Federal health officials released a proposed rule late Monday that sets 2021 Medicare payment rates for physicians and includes changes to the Merit-based Incentive Payment System. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services released the draft of its proposed annual Physician Fee Schedule and Quality Payment Program rule (PDF), which updates the payment rates for physician services. As previously promised by Centers […]