Impact of Audio-only Telephone in Delivering Health Services During COVID-19 and Prospects for Future Payment Policies & Medical Board Regulations

Center for Connected Health Policy (CCHP): Impact of Audio-only Telephone in Delivering Health Services During COVID-19 and Prospects for Future Payment Policies & Medical Board Regulations

CCHP released a study that examined the use of audio-only as a modality to provide services from a federally qualified health center (FQHC) to patients in the Medicaid program. To select the states, CCHP examined the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) website to select the top ten states with the most COVID cases per 100,000 residents as of April 1, 2021. The states selected were: Arizona, Arkansas, Iowa, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Utah and Wisconsin. The FQHCs in this study all expressed concerns for their patients’ ability to access care should the audio-only waivers not be made permanent or extended.