Summary of Proposed Telemedicine Policy Changes in Medicare

This is the first of two blogs about the telemedicine provisions in the draft CY2019 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule published last week by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). I’ve summarized below what CMS is proposing, and I will follow up with some thoughts about the implications for telehealth coverage and adoption. Each [...]

2018-07-17T21:39:52-04:00July 17th, 2018|

Why Congress’s Opioid Effort is a Major Step Forward for Telehealth Reimbursement

Over the past several weeks, the House of Representatives passed 58 opioid-related bills. The Senate is in the midst of considering their own legislation. The intent of congressional leaders in both chambers is to reconcile these legislative packages and send a final bill to the President this year. This effort is key to solving a [...]

2018-06-27T14:15:25-04:00June 27th, 2018|

Finally, a Chance for Telemedicine to Shine in Medicare and Medicaid

This past week was big for telemedicine in public programs.  Both telehealth and remote patient monitoring (RPM) are proven tools in the commercial marketplace, but reimbursement restrictions have made adoption in Medicare and Medicaid pretty close to non-existent.  It is still essential to pass legislation to fix outdated legal barriers in these programs.  However, the [...]

2016-05-02T15:07:14-04:00May 2nd, 2016|

Finally, a Real Chance for Change in Medicare Related to Telehealth & Remote Monitoring

February 3, 2016 | Krista Drobac, Executive Director of the Alliance for Connected Care Today represents the first real chance we have had to change Medicare payment policy for telehealth and remote patient monitoring. While the commercial market adopts these tools at a rapid rate, there is virtually no access for seniors in Medicare. This [...]

2016-02-03T20:21:51-04:00February 3rd, 2016|

Five National Policy Developments that Advance Telemedicine

This year was a busy year for telemedicine at the state level. State legislatures and medical boards across the country considered dozens of measures, most of them aimed at improving the policy environment for telemedicine. In the flurry of activity, you may have missed some major developments at the national level that are going to [...]

2015-09-29T16:55:05-04:00September 29th, 2015|

The Role of Policy in Hindering Telemedicine’s Progress

The Los Angeles Convention Center is abuzz this week with discussions about the future of patient care as the American Telemedicine Association brings together entrepreneurs, technology and device companies, health systems, and others for their annual meeting. Treating patients is no longer restricted to regular office hours and judging by the exhibit hall at the [...]

2015-05-05T17:01:24-04:00May 5th, 2015|

2015: Another Unstoppable Year for Telehealth

Offering telehealth1 to employees or health plan beneficiaries used to be a differentiator in benefits – an added perk for employees or health care consumers increasingly demanding convenience and accessibility. Today, it is rapidly becoming a necessary addition to benefit packages. Not only do employees and prospective health plan enrollees want it, but it’s also [...]

2015-03-24T17:00:50-04:00March 24th, 2015|

Telehealth: An Important Tool in Achieving the Goals of the ACO Program and Why Restrictions Should Be Lifted in Final ACO Rule

December 12, 2014 | Krista Drobac, Executive director of the Alliance for Connected Care In the recently released proposed rule related to the accountable care organization (ACO) program1 (or Medicare Shared Savings Program, as it is formally known), the CMS contemplated allowing ACOs to utilize and be reimbursed for an important tool in better coordinating [...]

2014-12-13T03:42:50-04:00December 12th, 2014|
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