Anesthesia Coding Alert

Question: Are all these changes to telehealth and other forms of virtual medicine temporary, or are providers getting a glimpse of a new future, with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) expanding access to virtual care?

Nevada Subscriber

Answer: CMS’ telehealth policies are woefully behind those of states and private payers, and the waivers required because of COVID-19 may have positive long-term impacts on future Medicare updates, suggest attorneys Jacob J. Harper, Eric J. Knickrehm, and Scott A. Memmott with international law firm Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP in the Health Law Scan blog. “Although CMS makes a point of noting that this waiver is temporary, if telehealth is successfully furnished to Medicare beneficiaries during the crisis, this may create the momentum necessary to convince Congress to bring the Medicare telehealth benefit into the 21st Century and enact a permanent Medicare telehealth bill in the near future,” they say.