Telehealth News and Market Developments
Fortune: Doctors and Patients are Sold on Telehealth.. Congress is Still Unsure About Its Long-Term Future (1/27) - The $1.7 trillion spending package Congress passed in December included a two-year extension of key telehealth provisions, such as coverage for Medicare beneficiaries to have phone or video medical appointments at home. But it also signaled political reluctance to make the payment changes permanent, requiring federal regulators to study how Medicare enrollees use telehealth. At issue are questions about the value and cost of telehealth, who will benefit from its use, and whether audio and video appointments should continue to be reimbursed at the same rate as face-to-face care. The Alliance for Connected Care continues to share data and evidence to ensure policymakers make permanent telehealth policies.
The Hill: The 118th Congress Must Keep Working on Mental Health (1/26) - As the new Congress begins, addressing mental health remains one area of bipartisan agreement and focus. The American Psychiatric Association (APA) and the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI), both members of the Alliance's advisory board, recommended Congress to loosen restrictions on patients’ access to telehealth services, which served as a lifeline for many seeking mental health and substance use disorder treatment during the pandemic. The organizations urge Congress to remove uncertainty and make many telehealth flexibilities permanent.
Inside Telehealth: Lobby For Telehealth Rx Of Controlled Substances Includes New Ideas (1/26) - The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) recently indicated it would propose a rule by the end of this month that would let telehealth prescribers apply for special exemptions, but the rule has been pending at the White House budget office since last March and was not cleared at press time. DEA’s plan to propose a rule titled Special Registration to Engage in the Practice of Telemedicine has been on the agency’s regulatory agenda since 2015 and the previous 2022 Spring agenda had an August 2022 deadline for the same proposed rule that never came to fruition, lending uncertainty to when, or whether, the rule will be finalized.
See the Alliance for Connected Care's Related Advocacy
Pew Charitable Trusts: New Medicare Policies Expand Access to Treatment for Opioid Use Disorder (1/26) - The Pew Charitable Trusts provides an overview of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) updated reimbursement policies that expand access to treatment for opioid use disorder (OUD) via telehealth and mobile units. Additionally, the organization emphasizes the importance of Medicare coverage of opioid treatment programs (OTP) via telehealth. OTP via telehealth to start patients on buprenorphine is a highly effective OUD medication. The Pew Charitable Trusts urges Medicare to continue and expand coverage to ensure beneficiaries with OUD receive essential treatment and remain in it.
Stanford Medicine: Stanford Medicine Magazine Spotlights Social Determinants of Health, Including Telehealth (1/25) - The new issue of Stanford Medicine magazine features articles about the ways nonmedical factors can help or hinder our health and presents initiatives to promote health equity. The theme package includes a roundup of educational, clinical, research and community initiatives addressing the challenges presented by social determinants of health — from screening pediatric patients for food insecurity; to the first large-scale, nationwide survey of LGBTQ health; to a partnership with Roots Community Health Center clinic to identify needs and challenges in using telehealth services. Read more here.
The Anchor: Why College Students Need Telehealth Legislation (1/25) – During the pandemic, out-of-state students were able to partake in counseling at home due to relaxed requirements for licensure. However, the reinstatement of these rules can affect Michigan students, particularly freshmen who are leaving their immediate support systems. Additionally, the inability to contact a familiar counselor would likely add stress to a student’s already challenging transition. The author urges Michigan to pass interstate health service legislation to ensure continued access for college students.
Healthcare IT News: Geisinger Solves Behavioral Health Access Problem with Telemedicine (1/25) – Geisinger Health System faced a shortage of behavioral health providers. They recognized that scaling access virtually would be the best way to provide access for their patients. Implementing their virtual behavioral health service allowed patients to stay close to their families while providing a great deal of flexibility and autonomy for providers. Telehealth allowed the health system to increase the amount of providers on their team.
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