Health Information Compliance Alert

In the calendar year (CY) 2022 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS), the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) offers a few telehealth highlights. Read on for the details on two important updates.

Expansion: CMS is continuing to monitor the “Category 3” codes that it temporarily added during the COVID-19 public health emergency (PHE) to its Medicare telehealth services list. But, the rule does finalize keeping “certain services” on the list through Dec. 31, 2023, to give CMS more time to evaluate the services, the fact sheet indicates.

“Category 3 telehealth services in the final rule include home visits for established patients, emergency department visits, critical care services, and hospital and nursing facility discharge day management services,” says partner attorney Eric D. Fader with law firm Rivkin Radler LLP in online legal analysis. “CMS also extended the inclusion of two new cardiac rehab codes through calendar year 2023.”

Behavioral health: CMS also added audio-only communications to its definition of interactive telecommunications system for telehealth services for the diagnosis, evaluation, or treatment of mental health disorders offered to established patients in their homes, the rule indicates. A new modifier for these services was also finalized in the rule.

Resource: Review the MPFS at www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2021-11-19/pdf/2021-23972.pdf.