Health Information Compliance Alert

Expect more changes in the coming months, too.

If your organization has relied heavily on telehealth services during the pandemic, you’re not alone. Many practices have utilized these helpful technologies to assist patients and have taken advantage of federal waivers to make ends meet. Read on for some policy updates the feds propose for next year.

Context: On July 29, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) published its calendar year (CY) 2023 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS) proposed rule in the Federal Register, continuing its pandemic-inspired focus on health equity and access to safe, affordable healthcare. Among the proposals are critical updates on the expansion of Medicare telehealth services.

“At CMS, we are constantly striving to expand access to high quality, comprehensive health care for people served by the Medicare program,” says CMS Administrator Chiquita Brooks- LaSure in a release on the proposed rule. “Today’s proposals expand access to vital medical services like behavioral health care, dental care, and cancer treatment options, all while promoting access, innovation, and cost savings in the Medicare program.”

Factor in These Key Telehealth Proposals

Know that telehealth services policymaking continues to evolve. First, CMS proposes to extend coverage of the temporary codes it didn’t add to its Medicare telehealth services list under Categories 1, 2, or 3 during the public health emergency (PHE), until 151 days after the PHE ends, the proposed rule indicates.

Plus: CMS proposes to add 54 codes to Category 3 of the Medicare telehealth services list. Remember, however, that the agency had originally earmarked the Category 3 codes to “expire at the end of the year in which the PHE ends, but CMS extended coverage of those codes hrough December 31, 2023,” remind attorneys Rachel B. Goodman, Nathaniel M. Lacktman, and Thomas B. Ferrante with Foley & Lardner LLP.