telehealth

Federal Health Policy Update for Thursday, May 12

The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government as 2:30 p.m. on Thursday, May 12. Some of the language used below is taken directly from government documents. Provider Relief Fund HHS’s Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) has released $450 million in American Rescue Plan grants to rural health care providers. Go here to find the updated database of rural grant recipients. Department of Health and Human Services HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra and CMS Administrator Chiquita Brooks-LaSure have written to the nation’s governors about some of the challenges states will face when the COVID-19 public health [...]

iqtsupport2022-05-12T16:41:48-04:00May 12, 2022|Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, COVID-19, Medicaid, Medicaid regulations, Medicare, Medicare regulations, Telehealth|

Pandemic-Driven Telehealth Expansion Reaching the Disadvantaged

Contrary to the expectations of many, people who are considered disadvantaged based on where they live have experienced a greater increase in the use of telehealth services than any other group since access to such services was expanded in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. According to a report published in Health Affairs, a previous trend that found an inverse link between socio-economic status and telehealth use reversed during the pandemic for non-elderly patients, with all minority groups experiencing increased telehealth use. The only exception has been among older adults, who continue to experience declines in telehealth use as they age. [...]

iqtsupport2022-05-09T06:00:40-04:00May 9, 2022|Telehealth|

Federal Health Policy Update for Thursday, May 5

The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government as of 2:30 p.m. on Thursday, May 5. Some of the language used below is taken directly from government documents. Department of Health and Human Services HHS and its Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) have awarded nearly $25 million to 125 HRSA-funded health centers to improve and strengthen access to school-based health services. Awards will support local partnerships between schools and health centers to provide children and youth with comprehensive physical and mental health care. Learn more from this HHS news release. HHS and its Substance Abuse [...]

iqtsupport2022-05-05T16:22:38-04:00May 5, 2022|Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Coronavirus, COVID-19, MACPAC, Medicaid, Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission, Medicare, Medicare post-acute care, Medicare regulations, Medicare reimbursement policy, MedPAC|

Telehealth Utilization Tracks Pandemic Decline

The frequency with which Americans are using telehealth to receive some of their health care, which rose considerably during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, has declined since doctors returned to their offices and fear of contagion lessened. Even so, the use of telehealth is far more common than it was before the COVID-19 public health emergency. A new analysis of telehealth utilization produced the following findings: Telehealth outpatient visits have declined since the early months of the pandemic. Even amid the general decline in telehealth visits, they remain higher than they were before the pandemic. The non-elderly are [...]

iqtsupport2022-02-11T17:35:08-05:00February 11, 2022|COVID-19, Telehealth|

Federal Health Policy Update for Thursday, February 3

The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government as of 2:30 p.m. on Thursday, February 3. Some of the language used below is taken directly from government documents. Provider Relief Fund The reconsideration window for Provider Relief Fund Phase 4 payments and American Rescue Plan rural hospital payments is now open for providers to request reconsideration of their payments. This process is intended only for providers that believe their payment was not calculated correctly. They will not have an opportunity to submit an application if they missed a deadline; will not be able to revise or [...]

iqtsupport2022-02-03T17:46:52-05:00February 3, 2022|Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, CMMI, Coronavirus, COVID-19, health equity, hospitals, MACPAC, Medicaid, Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission, Medicare regulations, Medicare reimbursement policy, MedPAC, Telehealth|

Federal Health Policy Update for Monday, December 6

The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government as of 2:45 p.m. on Monday, December 6. Some of the language used below is taken directly from government documents. The White House The White House has published a plan outlining the steps the administration will take to combat the delta and omicron variants of COVID-19 in the coming months. The major components of this plan are boosters for all adults, vaccinations for children, expanded free home testing, stronger public health protocols for international travel, workplace protections, rapid response teams to help battle rising cases, and supplying treatment [...]

iqtsupport2021-12-06T17:23:36-05:00December 6, 2021|Accountable Care Organization, Alternative payment models, Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, CMMI, Coronavirus, COVID-19, MACPAC, Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission, Medicare reimbursement policy, MedPAC, Telehealth|

CMS Funds Expanded Telehealth in Four States

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services is building on its Community Health Access and Rural Transformation (CHART) Model by awarding up to $20 million to organizations in four states to expand the use of telehealth in their communities and introduce other improvements that enhance access to care in rural areas. Organizations in Alabama, South Dakota, Texas, and Washington state will receive $2 million for planning and up to $3 million each for achieving specific objectives. The CHART model seeks to use telehealth and other means, reimbursed through an accountable care organization model, to address health disparities and reduce hospital [...]

iqtsupport2021-10-21T06:00:15-04:00October 21, 2021|Accountable Care Organization, ACO, Alternative payment models, Telehealth|

Federal Health Policy Update for Thursday, September 23

The following is the latest health policy news from the federal government as of 3:30 p.m. on Thursday, September 23. Some of the language used below is taken directly from government documents. Provider Relief Fund HHS’s Health Resources and Services Administration has posted new information about planned distributions of additional COVID-19 supplemental funding for health care providers through the Provider Relief Fund and for qualified rural hospitals through funding made available through the American Rescue Plan. Included in the new posting is information about: Web events to explain what the agency is doing and what providers must do to pursue [...]

iqtsupport2021-09-23T17:39:28-04:00September 23, 2021|Coronavirus, COVID-19, MACPAC, Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission, Telehealth|

Study of Cardiac Telehealth Yields Interesting Results

Increased use of telehealth among cardiac patients as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic has produced some interesting results. According to a study published by JAMA Open Network, …[cardiology] patients using COVID-era remote visits were more likely to be Asian, Black, or Hispanic individuals, have private insurance, and have cardiovascular comorbidities. Compared with pre-COVID in-person visits, clinicians during COVID-era video and telephone visits had a significantly lower odds of ordering any medication as well as most tests. The use of telehealth has increased significantly since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic and the introduction of temporary Medicare regulations that encourage [...]

iqtsupport2021-04-12T06:00:02-04:00April 12, 2021|Medicare, Telehealth|

Expand Use of Telehealth, Group Recommends

The federal government should encourage greater use of telehealth, a task force has recommended. Among the changes recommended by the task force, it called on the federal government to make permanent some of the temporary extensions of the use of telehealth authorized for Medicare in response to COVID-19, including: Lifting geographic restrictions and limitations on originating sites. Allowing telehealth for various types of clinicians and conditions. Acknowledging, as many states now do, that telehealth visits can meet requirements for establishing a clinician/patient relationship if the encounter meets appropriate care standards or unless careful analysis demonstrates that, in specific situations, a [...]

iqtsupport2020-09-28T06:00:26-04:00September 28, 2020|Medicare|