By Kate Goodrich
On October 14, 2020, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) expanded the list of telehealth services that Medicare Fee-For-Service will pay for during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) public health emergency. According to CMS, the agency is also providing additional support to state Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) agencies in their efforts to expand access to telehealth.
The Trump administration first expanded Medicare to cover telehealth services in March. Then, in a May rule, CMS tweaked the process for adding or removing services from the Medicare telehealth list to allow for faster processing during the COVID-19 public health emergency.
Additional Insights: COVID-19 Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) on Medicare Fee-for-Service (FFS) Billing »
For the first time using the new expedited process, CMS is adding 11 new services to the Medicare telehealth services list. The expansion means that the 11 telehealth services will be reimbursed for the duration of the public health emergency. Medicare will begin paying eligible practitioners who furnish these newly added telehealth services effective immediately, and for the duration of emergency declaration, which was renewed for another 90 days on October 2, 2020.
According to CMS, the additions are part of the latest push by the agency to accelerate use of telehealth by removing reimbursement barriers. The list of these newly added services is available here. The additions bring coverage by Medicare to a total of 144 telehealth services.
CMS also released a new toolkit to give states more guidance on how to expand use of telehealth in Medicaid and CHIP, as well as updated supplemental information that is intended to help states strategically think through how they explain and clarify to providers and other stakeholders which policies are temporary or permanent. The documents are designed to help states identify services that can be accessed through telehealth, which providers may deliver those services, the ways providers may use in order to deliver services through telehealth, as well as the circumstances under which telehealth can be reimbursed once the public health emergency expires.
For news and updates related to the COVID-19 pandemic, visit JW.com/Coronavirus. For questions related to telehealth, contact Healthcare Chair Virginia Alverson Mimmack or a Jackson Walker attorney. For additional insights related to telemedicine, view the following articles from Jackson Walker attorneys:
- “Governor Abbott Announces Agreement With Health Insurers to Continue Payment Parity for Telehealth” (October 2, 2020)
- “Telemedicine Fraud During COVID-19” (July 2, 2020)
- “Update on Telemedicine and Telehealth Policies During COVID-19” (April 20, 2020)
- “Telemedicine & COVID-19 – What You Need to Know” (April 1, 2020)
- “Telehealth: A Powerful Tool in Fighting COVID-19 Emergency-Driven Waivers and Payment Parity Requirements” (March 20, 2020)
- “HIPAA Enforcement Authorities Allow Skype, Facetime for Provider-Patient Telehealth Services” (March 18, 2020)
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Please note: This article and any resources presented on the JW Coronavirus Insights & Resources site are for informational purposes only, do not constitute legal or medical advice, and are not a substitute for legal advice from qualified counsel. The laws of other states and nations may be entirely different from what is described. Your use of these materials does not create an attorney-client relationship between you and Jackson Walker. The facts and results of each case will vary, and no particular result can be guaranteed.
