On March 15, 2021, the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) released its Medicare Payment Policy report to Congress updating payment recommendations for providers paid under Medicare’s traditional fee-for-service payment systems in nine sectors. MedPAC unanimously recommended a two-percent increase in the 2021 Medicare base payment rates for acute care hospitals and long-term hospitals and a […]
As previously covered, over the past year the telehealth landscape has been a patchwork of temporary waivers and regulations, expanding access during the COVID-19 pandemic but leaving providers and patients uncertain about whether the positive coverage and reimbursement changes and relaxation of pre-pandemic restrictions would continue in the future. Many of the waivers on the […]
Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, federal agencies have sought to allow health care companies more flexibility to use popular technology and applications to better engage with their patients. One example is the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Civil Rights (OCR), which issued a notice that it will allow health care providers to use widely-available communications software without […]
Telehealth advocates are rallying behind a bill that would allow rural and remote hospitals to use telehealth to treat patients in surrounding communities who are dealing with mental health issues. By Eric Wicklund March 29, 2021 – A new bill before Congress aims to expand telehealth access for patients living with mental health concerns at rural hospitals. The […]
A new bipartisan House bill would ensure beneficiaries in Medicare Advantage (MA) plans can get access to audio-only telehealth services, a major ask from insurers. The bill, introduced Tuesday, aims to build on flexibilities given to providers by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to reimburse for telehealth services in light of the […]
Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, telehealth was more of a stretch goal than a reality for most providers despite the seeming prevalence of video conferencing. Traditionally, although technology barriers were cited as a limiting factor, the gradual widespread adoption of high-speed internet and smartphones overcame that obstacle for most patients, but some of those least […]
Lawmakers and public policy experts are calling on Congress to expand home- and community-based services (HCBS) and telehealth as the U.S. emerges from the deadly COVID-19 pandemic. During a hearing of the U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging Thursday, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) said HCBS should be a mandatory benefit under Medicaid and should be […]
If signed into law, the APTA-backed bill would achieve a major association goal. Contact Congress now to voice your support.NewsDate: Wednesday, March 24, 2021 Informed by lessons learned during the COVID-19 pandemic, a bipartisan group of lawmakers in the U.S. House of Representatives has introduced APTA-backed legislation that would make payment for services delivered via telehealth […]
WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senators Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), a senior member of the Senate Finance Committee that sets national health policy, and Dan Sullivan (R-Alaska) formally introduced bipartisan legislation today to close the digital divide in health care and address racial and ethnic disparities in maternal health outcomes. The Tech to Save Moms Act will […]
The Covid-19 pandemic has decimated hospital finances, and as a result, rural providers are forced to make key IT spending decisions with limited dollars. Here is a snapshot of how they will prioritize those dollars this year and the federal support they need to survive the ongoing public health crisis. By ANUJA VAIDYA Post a comment / Mar […]
Crises have the unique power to both unearth long-simmering problems and unmask raw potential. I think it’s fair to say that the COVID-19 pandemic (an indisputable crisis) has managed to do both. While it has revealed fissures in our healthcare system — infection control issues in congregate settings, and healthcare disparities among races and between […]
Minutes after the full Senate confirmed Xavier Becerra’s cabinet nomination, advocacy groups were reminding him of the need to bring the American healthcare system “into the 21st century.” By Kat Jercich March 18, 2021 03:19 PM Health advocacy groups congratulated new U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra on his confirmation Thursday […]
The hospital reimbursement increase should also come with quality incentive program revisions, while physician rates should stay the course, according to the March report to Congress. By Jacqueline LaPointe March 17, 2021 – In its annual March report to Congress, the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) has recommended a 2 percent increase in Medicare hospital reimbursement rates in 2022 and […]
In the early morning of Feb. 27, 2021, the U.S. House of Representatives narrowly passed H.R. 1319, the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, by a 219-212 vote. Two Democrats joined with a united Republican caucus to oppose the bill. House Democratic leadership introduced and passed the American Rescue Plan the same week the United States […]
On March 10, 2021, Congress finalized and passed the American Rescue Plan of 2021 (ARP), the latest COVID-19 relief package that largely tracks President Biden’s initial $1.9 trillion proposal. The ARP extends unemployment insurance benefits and provides direct $1,400 stimulus payments to qualifying Americans, but it also makes several important health-policy-related changes. These include providing […]