CMS Approves Telemedicine for Medicaid Encounters

Just this week, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced a final rule proclaiming that telemedicine for Medicaid home health services may qualify for reimbursement. CMS urges individual states to determine specifically the types of telemedicine that will be authorized.

In order to count as a face-to-face visit, the appointment must meet certain conditions, including:

• The home health service is facilitated by nurses, aides, and/or equipment.

• An in-person visit relating to the need for home health services occurs within 90 days before or 30 days after the start of telemedicine services.

• The telemedicine visits are documented in accordance with the Affordable Care Act by physicians or particular non-physician practitioners.

The new rule will be published on Feb. 2 and become active on July 1.

Medicare already has a similar rule in effect, but it does not permit telemedicine visits.

This is great news for patients and providers, allowing them to save significant time, effort, and money. With this approval for reimbursement for telemedicine for Medicaid, we believe that demand for telemedicine and mobile health services will jump in the near future.

Having foreseen this development, we are already adapting our secure video conferencing platform for home health services.

Are you ready?

To learn how swyMed functions in a home health care environment, send us an online message at swymed.com today!