Digital Health Advances End with PHE

Photo: Alistair Berg/Getty Images

Congress added safeguards to keep telemedicine and emergency hospital care at home for two years after the end of the public health emergency, but many questions remain as to how the expiration of PHE waivers will affect these two programs and others, according to experts from the Connected Health Initiative. .

“Honestly, I have always worried about this day and whether it will come. We didn’t want to go back to the old days…” said Morgan Reid, president of ACT | App Association announcement on Monday about the end date of PHE.

One of the problems is the end of remote monitoring, which is used by hospitals for home programs. The hospital may stay at home for two years, but the digital connection that allows the program to work may not work.

“We are skeptical that CMS (Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services) will allow remote home monitoring to continue,” said CHI Executive Director Brian Scarpelli.

WHY IS IT IMPORTANT

Reed and Scarpelli say it is known that with PHE discontinued, patients are likely to pay more money for treatment and their ability to communicate with their doctors through existing devices will no longer be allowed.

PHE losses include: medical codes for providing some elements of care, including category 3 codes, which are state-based telemedicine payments; remote support for skilled care; live voice video services; virtual registrations; Facetime; and monitoring blood glucose levels.

“The real urgency here is the promise to move away from digital health,” Reid said. “Patients and doctors will lose…”

On Jan. 25, CHI sent Congress a list of priorities for continuing digital innovation that CMS allowed during the public health emergency.

Conversations with political leaders have been productive and supportive, Reid and Scarpelli said, but no bills are expected, and the split between the House and Senate makes it difficult for lawmakers to reach consensus on a bill that hits the president’s table.

BIG TREND

CHI estimates that about 43% of physicians in the United States currently use telemedicine services in their patient appointments, urging Congress to give CMS maximum statutory flexibility to cover telemedicine visits where appropriate.

Among other recommendations, CHI wants Congress to permanently allow Medicare to cover real-time audio and video visits regardless of patient location and continue to focus on long-term digital health delivery, including wearable devices and software platforms that are eligible for reimbursement.

The White House this week announced the end of the public health emergency on May 11.

Twitter: @SusanJMorse
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