Telehealth News and Market Developments
Scientific American: Telehealth Is Proving to be a Boon to Cancer and Diabetes Care (3/16) - Telehealth is now being used in other medical areas, such as in cancer care. Although chemotherapy and immunotherapy are typically done in person, follow-up visits and medication and symptom management can be done virtually. For patients with cancer receiving routine treatment, that equals a lot less hassle. And for a patient with a poor prognosis, it might be even more meaningful.
“The biggest gift [we can] give them is time,” - Leah Rosengaus, director of digital health at Stanford Health Care, an Alliance Board Member
Employee Benefit News: Post-Pandemic Telehealth Should Leave No Beneficiary Behind (3/16) - James Gelfand, president of the ERISA Industry Committee (ERIC), published an op-ed on employee telehealth benefits. He highlights the impending loss of access to telehealth benefits for many patients enrolled in employer-sponsored health plans and the impact it would have on workers and families. In the article, he urges Congress to enact the Telehealth Benefit Expansion for Workers Act of 2023 (H.R. 824) and to adopt policies to eliminate state barriers to telehealth access across state lines so there is national uniformity.
mHealth Intelligence: How a Telehealth Partnership is Expanding Critical Care for Newborns (3/16) - A partnership between two hospitals leverages telehealth to expand intensive care access for newborns in New Mexico, enabling infants and their families to stay close to home. An informal partnership between San Juan Regional Medical Center and Presbyterian Hospital has been ongoing for years, with San Juan Regional clinicians often calling Presbyterian specialists over the phone to discuss patient care. San Juan Regional purchased an Amwell telemedicine cart to facilitate virtual video consultations with Presbyterian's NICU team.
"[The] telemedicine carts are designed to support both in and outpatient care," said Carrie Nelson, MD, chief medical officer at Amwell, an Alliance Board Member. "They are equipped to manage high and low acuity cases to enable timely access to healthcare specialists across the country."
The Washington Post: The DEA's Proposed Rule Could Jeopardize Expanded Access to Life-Changing Medications Afforded by Telehealth (3/14) - The Drug Enforcement Administration is proposing a requirement that patients be evaluated in person before receiving a class of tightly regulated drugs, including Adderall, citing their potential for abuse. The proposal had drawn more than 1,750 comments on the first day of its release, including many from patients and providers who say that it could jeopardize the expanded access to life-changing medications afforded by telehealth.
MedPage Today: Life-Saving Telehealth for Opioid Use Disorder Hangs in the Balance (3/14) - Individuals genuinely impacted by mental health and substance use disorders benefited from easier access to medications during the public health emergency through online providers who did follow best practices. Importantly, the growing psychiatrist shortage was partly alleviated by the innovative use of digital technology. The authors share concerns around the DEA's proposed rule, which could put population health in jeopardy given the current state of the opioid epidemic.
Healthcare IT News: Using Remote Patient Monitoring (RPM) to Manage Customized Specialty Care Between Office Visits (3/13) - The future of remote patient monitoring will be defined by broader adoption, novel devices, application to more conditions and consolidation of vendors. Andrew Zengilowski, CEO and cofounder of CoachCare, vendor of an RPM platform, discusses managing patients not just during appointments but always and the role RPM can play in decreasing patient costs, increasing care efficiency and reducing staff burnout.
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