Bill to Expand Medicare Audiology Coverage Passes House

The U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 3 (the Lower Drug Costs Now Act) yesterday, boosting ASHA’s efforts to increase Medicare beneficiaries’ access to hearing-related services provided by audiologists. Included in this bill is Section 602, “Providing Coverage for Hearing Care under the Medicare Program” (pg. 169). Section 602 adds new hearing benefits, including hearing aids, for Medicare beneficiaries with severe to profound hearing loss. H.R. 3 includes many of the provisions supported by ASHA and other hearing-related organizations. Specifically, Section 602 of H.R. 3 would allow audiologists to be reimbursed by Medicare for covered diagnostic and treatment services that they are licensed to provide. (Current Medicare regulations reimburse only for diagnostic services, and then only after an order from a physician.) The bill also would reclassify audiologists as practitioners under Medicare, giving seniors better access to hearing and balance care provided by audiologists. The bill also mandates a study to examine beneficiary direct access to audiologists and clarifies that the U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services has the authority to allow audiologists to provide and be reimbursed for services without  a physician order. In October, ASHA, the American Academy of Audiology (AAA), and the Academy of Doctors of Audiology (ADA) issued a joint statement supporting the Medicare Hearing Act of 2019 (H.R. 4618). While key provisions from H.R. 4056...
Source: American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) Press Releases - Category: Speech-Language Pathology Authors: Tags: Advocacy Audiology Health Care News Slider audiologist federal policy hearing health care medicare Source Type: blogs