Current State of Telemedicine

As we previously reported, the CHRONIC Care Act of 2017 was introduced by Senate Finance Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch and Ranking Member Ron Wyden, along with Johnny Isakson and Mark Warner, the co-chairs of the Committee’s Chronic Care Working Group. The bill is largely unchanged from the previous version, which was introduced in December 2016. The bill will have an especially large impact on telehealth services in the United States by allowing MA plans the ability to include telehealth services; gives some ACOs the opportunity to provide telehealth services; gives those receiving dialysis treatments at home the ability to check-in with their physician at home; and expands the availability of telehealth to ensure individuals who may be having a stroke receive the correct diagnosis and treatment. Expanding Telemedicine Adoption As of late 2012, 42 percent of U.S. hospitals had adopted telemedicine, but adoption rates vary significantly by geography. Alaska was the highest with 75 percent, while Rhode Island had minimal adoption. Additionally, states often require physicians to be licensed to practice in the “originating” site, i.e., the patient must be in the same state in which the attending physician is licensed to practice. Some states require that providers maintain a license with the board where the patient is located, which can lead to extra costs and paperwork for the providers. Recent Telemedicine Developments MACRA contained a number of provisions that ai...
Source: Policy and Medicine - Category: American Health Authors: Source Type: blogs