“Caution is appropriate. Preparedness is appropriate. Panic is not.” (~ U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Jerome Adams, commenting on the coronavirus) The recent coronavirus outbreak is gaining world attention as it spreads, with increasing focus on outbreaks and containment efforts throughout the United States. On March 6, 2020, President Trump signed into law an emergency $8.3 billion […]
As the novel coronavirus outbreak continues, the federal government and commercial health insurers have taken significant steps to increase Americans’ access to treatment and testing. In the past week, the federal government and private insurers have issued a number of guidance documents expanding coverage and payment requirements in an effort to minimize the spread of […]
On March 6, 2020, President Trump signed H.R. 6074, the Coronavirus Preparedness and Response Supplemental Appropriations Act (the Act) into law (Public Law 116-123). The legislation, which was introduced on March 4 and swiftly passed both the House and Senate, provides $8.3 billion in emergency funding for federal agencies as well as state and local […]
Leveraging diagnostic testing technologies, telehealth and digital services are key to the administration’s rapid response to the coronavirus.Melissa HarrisFri, 03/13/2020 – 16:44ShareFacebookTwitterLinkedIn Improved diagnostic testing technology, telehealth, screening website services and other health IT solutions are critical elements to addressing the COVID-19 coronavirus outbreak, according to the White House national emergency announcement Friday. President Donald […]
The Office for Civil Rights (OCR) at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) recently released a bulletin reiterating the ways that patient information may be shared under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) privacy rule in an outbreak of infectious disease or other emergency situation. The bulletin serves as a reminder that […]
With concerns around staffing and supply shortages in nursing homes amid the coronavirus, telemedicine has emerged as a key potential weapon, receiving the first-ever major green light for reimbursement on the national level — as part of an $8.3 billion bill allowing the federal government to cover remote care for Medicare recipients passed last Wednesday. But the […]
One of the major hurdles to the expansion of telehealth has been the Medicare “originating site” requirement. This requirement limits Medicare telehealth reimbursement to services delivered in a physician’s office or healthcare facility in a rural area, but not in a home or non-rural area. In a shift, the “Telehealth Services During Certain Emergency Periods […]
Monday, March 9, 2020 The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) released several fact sheets on COVID-19 coverage and benefits, and announced a second Healthcare Common Procedure Coding System (HCPCS) code, U0002, for billing COVID-19 diagnostic tests. Medicare will accept claims with U0001 and U0002 starting on April 1, 2020, for dates of service […]
As part of emergency funding to combat the threat of the 2019 Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19), last week Congress waived many of the telehealth restrictions for Medicare services in certain situations. This monumental change could—depending on how it is implemented—radically alter how telehealth is performed in connection with the government’s most ubiquitous healthcare program. In a […]